ID :
190127
Tue, 06/21/2011 - 14:41
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/190127
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Local administrations should cut inefficiency, wastes of budgets
(Yonhap Editorial) SEOUL, June 21 (Yonhap) -- The financial health of local administrations has been getting worse due to stagnant local tax revenues and increasing welfare demand, according to government officials Tuesday.
The average ratio for measuring their financial independence from the state was 51.9 percent as of this year, 5.3 percentage points lower than seven years ago when local autonomy was introduced in earnest, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security said in a statement.
The rate was also 0.3 percentage point lower than a year ago, marking a decline for the third straight year.
After peaking at 57.2 percent in 2004 from 56.3 percent in 2003, the average ratio of local-tax and non-tax revenues in a local government's general account budget decreased to 56.2 percent in 2005, 54.4 percent in 2006 and 53.6 percent in 2007.
The rate for the Seoul Metropolitan Government, whose financial health is the best among all local administrations, increased 4.2 percentage point from last year's 85.8 percent to 90 percent. But most other large local administrations recorded poor performances ranging from 20.7 percent to 72.5 percent.
Of the 245 local administrations across the country, more than half, or 137 administrations, had revenues that were short of covering personnel expenditures last year.
Government officials attributed the worsening conditions to the slowing real estate market and increasing demand for welfare services. Real estate acquisitions and property taxes are local administrations' major sources of income.
Local administrations' financial health has many problems. However, we must especially point out the inefficient management and waste of budgets as big reasons.
Local administrations should cut inessential expenditures and make efforts to maximize efficiency, but there have been many cases in which local administrations wasted money in less-urgent projects and by building luxury administration buildings.
A luxurious city building in Seongnam City has eaten up 320 billion won, driving the city to declare a moratorium. The Wolmi Galaxy Rail, a project to construct a monorail to link Incheon Station and Wolmi Park for tourism, has been indefinitely suspended due to colossal corruption, after 853 billion won was invested in it. Another 25 billion won is needed for dismantling the unfinished railway.
The lax and inefficient financial management in local administrations should not be left uncorrected, as it will bring forth huge damage to the national economy and the collapse of the local autonomy system.
In order to prevent local administration officials from using budgets inefficiently and pushing for colossal projects recklessly, the participation of residents in drawing up the budget should be expanded. People's participation and monitoring are essential to improve local administrations' financial health.
The average ratio for measuring their financial independence from the state was 51.9 percent as of this year, 5.3 percentage points lower than seven years ago when local autonomy was introduced in earnest, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security said in a statement.
The rate was also 0.3 percentage point lower than a year ago, marking a decline for the third straight year.
After peaking at 57.2 percent in 2004 from 56.3 percent in 2003, the average ratio of local-tax and non-tax revenues in a local government's general account budget decreased to 56.2 percent in 2005, 54.4 percent in 2006 and 53.6 percent in 2007.
The rate for the Seoul Metropolitan Government, whose financial health is the best among all local administrations, increased 4.2 percentage point from last year's 85.8 percent to 90 percent. But most other large local administrations recorded poor performances ranging from 20.7 percent to 72.5 percent.
Of the 245 local administrations across the country, more than half, or 137 administrations, had revenues that were short of covering personnel expenditures last year.
Government officials attributed the worsening conditions to the slowing real estate market and increasing demand for welfare services. Real estate acquisitions and property taxes are local administrations' major sources of income.
Local administrations' financial health has many problems. However, we must especially point out the inefficient management and waste of budgets as big reasons.
Local administrations should cut inessential expenditures and make efforts to maximize efficiency, but there have been many cases in which local administrations wasted money in less-urgent projects and by building luxury administration buildings.
A luxurious city building in Seongnam City has eaten up 320 billion won, driving the city to declare a moratorium. The Wolmi Galaxy Rail, a project to construct a monorail to link Incheon Station and Wolmi Park for tourism, has been indefinitely suspended due to colossal corruption, after 853 billion won was invested in it. Another 25 billion won is needed for dismantling the unfinished railway.
The lax and inefficient financial management in local administrations should not be left uncorrected, as it will bring forth huge damage to the national economy and the collapse of the local autonomy system.
In order to prevent local administration officials from using budgets inefficiently and pushing for colossal projects recklessly, the participation of residents in drawing up the budget should be expanded. People's participation and monitoring are essential to improve local administrations' financial health.
