Seongnam Mayor Seeks Review of Youth Basic Income Ordinance, Putting Program on Path to Another Repeal

Seongnam’s youth basic income program is heading toward another repeal after Mayor Shin Sang-jin decided to ask the city council to reconsider an ordinance that would restore it.

The city said on the 8th that it would exercise its reconsideration request over the ordinance approved at the final plenary session of the Seongnam City Council’s 312th extraordinary session. Under the Local Autonomy Act, the ordinance would need support from at least two-thirds of members present to survive reconsideration. The council has 18 Democratic Party members and 14 People Power Party members, leaving the measure short of the 22 votes required unless members of the People Power Party break ranks.

The youth basic income program was first introduced nationwide when President Lee Jae-myung served as Seongnam’s mayor and later expanded across Gyeonggi province. After Shin took office, the related ordinance was repealed amid debate over the program’s effectiveness. The Democratic Party, which gained a council majority through the June 3 local elections, then pushed to enact it again. Shin’s reconsideration request has now blocked that effort once more.

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The fairness of youth policy should be assessed comprehensively by whether it provides real opportunities to all young people, rather than by distributing the same amount to a specific age group.

Seongnam says its policy focus should shift from uniform cash payments to tailored support that helps young people become self-sufficient. The proposed program would provide 1 million won a year in local currency to residents at age 24. The city cited a 2021 analysis saying 73.1% of the benefit was spent on short-term consumption, such as food, while only 11.2% went to self-development.

The city also pointed to a change in Gyeonggi’s fiscal-sharing formula. From 2027, the municipalities’ share would rise from 30% to 70%, leaving Seongnam with an additional annual burden of about 6 billion won if the program returns. Shin said that money would be better directed to employment, housing, welfare and education programs for all residents aged 19 to 39. Seongnam already operates programs including All-Pass for unemployed young people, rent and moving-cost assistance, and youth hope internships, with 11.89 billion won budgeted this year for youth capacity-building.

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We will focus on building sustainable foundations for self-reliance, including employment, startups and housing stability, rather than wasting limited resources on uniform payments.