▲ Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announces the city's budget proposal for 2027 at Seoul City Hall on the 29th.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has drawn up a budget of 55.7 trillion won for next year.
The amount represents an 8.3% increase from this year. Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon pointed out that the city's financial burden is growing due to the central government's expansion of welfare programs, and called for increased government funding.
During a press briefing on the 2027 budget proposal held at Seoul City Hall today (the 29th), Mayor Oh said, "While the tax burden per Seoul citizen is among the highest nationwide, government support is at the lowest level."
In particular, he pointed out that as the central government expands welfare programs without fully considering regional characteristics, the budget that Seoul is mandatorily required to cover is increasing.
He explained that Seoul's budget is being poured into government policies such as consumption coupons and high-oil-price relief funds, alongside livelihood security benefits and low birth rate support programs.
He also noted that there are projects entirely funded by Seoul without any government support, such as labor inspector labor costs and the operation of delinquent tax management teams.
Mayor Oh emphasized that due to differential subsidy rates for national subsidization projects, the additional amount Seoul has to bear compared to other regions has surged to the 3 trillion won range annually.
He argued that even when supporting the same projects, the central government applies relatively low national subsidy rates to Seoul, aggravating the city's financial burden.
He also cited the lack of government support for aging infrastructure as a problem.
Mayor Oh stated that Seoul has the highest number of public facilities over 30 years old nationwide, making urgent investments necessary to improve aging sewer pipes and subway facilities.
However, he pointed out that there is no government support for improving major aging facilities or compensating for losses from free subway rides for the elderly.
According to Seoul, as the central government's national subsidy projects—such as marriage and childcare support—expand, the city's share of expenses for next year is projected to increase by 1.17 trillion won compared to this year.
Amidst this, Seoul has structured its total budget for next year at 55.7445 trillion won, an increase of 4.2667 trillion won from this year.
Policy project expenditures—excluding support for the office of education and autonomous districts, as well as administrative operational expenses—were increased by 9% from this year to 31.5752 trillion won.
On the other hand, the city plans to manage Seoul's debt at around 11.5690 trillion won, a level similar to this year.
Mayor Oh emphasized, "We did not increase the debt that future generations must pay," adding, "Sound fiscal management does not mean cutting spending blindly, but rather reducing waste and properly investing where it is truly needed."
The Seoul Metropolitan Government will submit this budget proposal to the city council tomorrow.
The Seoul Metropolitan Council is scheduled to open a regular session starting on November 2 to deliberate on next year's budget proposal.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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