Gyeonggi Provincial Council urges enactment of Local Council Act

Members of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council and various National Assembly members held a press conference at the National Assembly on December 3 to urge the enactment of the Local Council Act within the year.

Nam Jong-seop, Chairman of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council, emphasized that while the 2022 amendment to the Local Autonomy Act granted independent personnel rights, local councils still lack essential powers regarding organizational structure, budget formulation, and auditing. He argued that these powers remain subordinate to executive bodies, hindering the council's ability to monitor and check government actions.

The group presented three core demands to the government and National Assembly: 1. The immediate passage of the pending Local Council Act within the current year. 2. Legal guarantees for organizational, budgetary, and auditing rights. 3. An expansion of the number of policy support officers and a review of their transition to special service positions.

Bipartisan support was evident, with representatives from both the Democratic Party and the People Power Party joining the call for legislative independence to ensure a more balanced local governance system.