[Anchor]
Boosted by a semiconductor boom, this year's national tax revenue is projected to reach a record high of 478.6 trillion won. This is over 63 trillion won more than what was estimated just six months ago. Controversy is growing over how the government will spend this massive amount of money.
Reporter Chae Heesun has the details.
[Reporter]
Following Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix also posted record-high operating profits.
The stellar performances of semiconductor companies led to an increase in tax revenue.
This includes not only corporate tax, but also income tax from performance bonuses and special dividends, as well as securities transaction tax.
The government's revised estimate for this year's national tax revenue stands at a record 478.6 trillion won.
This is an increase of 88.4 trillion won from the main budget forecast, and 63.2 trillion won more than the forecast made during the extra budget compilation in March.
The government's initial policy is to use a portion of the tax surplus to reduce the issuance of national bonds.
It also plans to allocate another portion to the Future Response Fund, a new 162 trillion won fund to be established next year, with the amount estimated to reach up to the mid-50 trillion won range.
However, as the size of the fund grows, controversies are resurfacing that it could become a government slush fund.
President Lee Jae-myung mentioned the fund while calling for expanded agricultural product discount support for the Lunar New Year and Chuseok holidays next year.
[President Lee Jae-myung (Cabinet meeting, two days ago): I think it would be good to significantly increase it next year to around 1 trillion won for both Lunar New Year and Chuseok. We can use the Future Response Fund for this, right? It also helps alleviate polarization.]
Some government ministries are also stepping forward to utilize the Future Response Fund as a funding source for their key projects.
[Government Ministry Official: They mentioned that the funding source for the OO Plan would be the Future Response Fund. That is the government-level plan.]
Local governments, which will receive less local share tax than expected as money flows into the fund, are pushing back.
[Park Chan-dae / Incheon Mayor and Chairperson of the National Governors' Association (two days ago): Stable financial resources must be secured for local governments to play their roles close to the residents.]
Experts point out that before the National Assembly reviews the bills related to the fund, the targets for support and allocation criteria must be clearly defined.
(Video Shooting: Lee Jae-young | Video Editing: Lee So-young | Design: Kim Ye-ji)
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