November 5 Legislative Report: 99.7% Internal Transactions at NACF

Cheonan's National Funding Projects Hinge on Rep. Lee Jae-gwan's Off-Floor Activities

Whether Cheonan's long-pending projects pass the National Assembly's budget review will shape the region's economic future. Democratic Party Rep. Lee Jae-gwan has recently been shuttling between the government and the National Assembly to secure national funding for key local initiatives, including the Cheonan Regional Garden development, the establishment of a Design-Manufacturing Innovation Center, and the construction of new badminton courts. While such off-floor work draws less attention than sponsoring bills, it deserves notice as a real engine of regional development.

Securing national funds begins at the budget-planning stage and is finalized after review by National Assembly standing committees and the Budget and Accounts Special Committee. In this process, a district lawmaker's role is to get projects reflected in the government's budget proposal and, if they are not included, to push for funding increases during the Assembly's review. Rep. Lee also attended South Chungcheong Province's policy briefing, coordinating the province's policy priorities with the needs of Cheonan-area projects—effectively appointing himself coordinator between the province, city, and the National Assembly.

Internal Transaction Structure Exposed in NACF Audit

Apart from legislative and budget work, Rep. Lee's standing committee activities are far from trivial. As a member of the National Assembly's Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans and Fisheries Committee, he examined the state of loan screening at member cooperatives during the National Assembly audit of the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation (NACF). Notably, he formally raised problems with the loan review system by pointing out that NACF joint-loan delinquencies had increased 146-fold.

An even more striking figure emerged from documents submitted by the NACF. According to materials Rep. Lee obtained, NACF Development covered 99.7% of its total revenue through internal transactions with the NACF, member cooperatives, and affiliated or related companies from 2021 through August of this year. In plain terms, the company generates its revenue entirely within the group rather than competing in the outside market. This case raises transparency concerns over transactions between public enterprises and their affiliates, and it is highly likely to be cited as supporting evidence in future reviews of NACF-related legislation or audit findings.

Why Securing National Funding Matters for the Region

Projects like the Cheonan Regional Garden and the Design-Manufacturing Innovation Center mean more than simple infrastructure investment. Garden development becomes a tourism resource, while the manufacturing innovation center lays the groundwork for boosting the technological competitiveness of local small and medium-sized enterprises. The new badminton courts, too, will be highly visible to citizens as an expansion of sports-for-all infrastructure.

These projects are difficult for local governments to pursue alone without central government funding. At a time when members of the Budget and Accounts Special Committee are immersed in year-end budget review, it is no exaggeration to say that a local lawmaker's lobbying power and cooperative ties with government ministries determine a project's survival. With Rebuilding Korea Party committee members Hyun-wook Lee and Young-hwa Kim among those participating in the budget review, Rep. Lee's next task as a ruling-party lawmaker is expected to be defending the national funding items he has secured from being cut during the review process.

Outlook and Implications

Year-end budget negotiations are intertwined with political tug-of-war between the ruling and opposition parties. Tensions have intensified in the National Assembly recently, with the People Power Party launching a filibuster over the manipulated-prosecution special counsel bill, and this political climate could affect the budget review schedule. If the special counsel bill is delayed or budget talks derail, the confirmation of regional funding projects will inevitably be pushed back as well.

Even so, with the Democratic Party holding a majority of seats, Cheonan-area projects appear to have a reasonable chance of being funded. Rep. Lee's challenge is to preserve each project's budget allocation until the budget bill passes the National Assembly. As Helen Keller said, greatness lies in doing small things greatly—that is the true calling of a local lawmaker. When audit findings and funding efforts accumulate into a track record, voters' assessments will follow.