About 60,000 Gyeonggi Province Residents Face Welfare Reverse Discrimination Due to Unreasonable Selection Criteria

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] As the Ministry of Health and Welfare is known to complete the 'Research on Reorganization of Regional Classification of Asset Standards for Basic Livelihood Security' by the end of February, Gyeonggi Province has decided to propose improvements to the related system to the government.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 2nd that it plans to submit a proposal to the government as early as the beginning of this month stating that the current 'Selection Criteria for Basic Livelihood Security and Basic Pension Welfare Beneficiaries' does not properly reflect regional characteristics and reality, resulting in a substantial number of Gyeonggi residents experiencing 'welfare reverse discrimination.'

According to the province, the current 'Regional Housing Cost Deduction Standards' under the 'Basic Livelihood Security Beneficiary Selection Criteria' classifies the six major metropolitan cities as 'large cities,' but cities in Gyeonggi Province as 'medium and small cities' and counties as 'rural areas.'

The 'Regional Housing Cost Deduction Standards' is a system that takes into account the reality that housing costs are higher in larger cities, and provides greater benefits to residents of large cities when calculating income for basic livelihood beneficiaries.

In fact, the current 'Basic Livelihood Security Welfare Beneficiary Selection Criteria' are ▲Large cities: 69 million won ▲Medium and small cities: 42 million won ▲Rural areas: 35 million won, with different housing cost deduction standards depending on the classification of the relevant city or county.

For Basic Pension, deduction standards are also different at ▲Large cities: 135 million won ▲Medium and small cities: 85 million won ▲Rural areas: 72.5 million won respectively.

The problem is that cities in Gyeonggi Province classified as medium and small cities have higher housing prices than the six major metropolitan cities, resulting in reverse discrimination contrary to the purpose of the system.

In fact, as of the end of December last year, the average jeonse price per ㎡ in Gyeonggi Province was 2.876 million won, which is actually 700,000 won higher than the average jeonse price per ㎡ of 2.176 million won in the 'six major metropolitan cities' including Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, Ulsan, Incheon, and Gwangju. The average transaction price per ㎡ is also 4.404 million won, which is 1.15 million won higher than the average of 3.254 million won in the six major metropolitan cities.

Comparing a four-member household with a monthly income of 1.2 million won residing in a jeonse housing of 69 million won in Suwon City and Incheon Metropolitan City in Gyeonggi Province applying these standards, a four-member household living in Incheon receives a deduction standard of 69 million won, resulting in asset income conversion of '0.'

However, a four-member household in Suwon City, Gyeonggi Province only applies a deduction standard of 42 million won, resulting in asset income of 27 million won.

As a result, among four-member households living in Incheon with income of 1.2 million won, those who are Basic Livelihood Security beneficiaries can receive living expenses and medical benefits of 260,000 won (selection standard of 1.46 million won minus income of 1.2 million won), but a household in Suwon City, Gyeonggi Province cannot receive any support under the same conditions.

The province estimates that approximately 60,000 Gyeonggi residents are excluded from Basic Livelihood Security beneficiary selection because they are not included in 'large cities' under the 'Housing Maintenance Cost Deduction Standards by City and Province.'

Accordingly, the province plans to prepare and propose three improvement measures to the government: ▲Subdividing the current three-tier system of large cities, medium and small cities, and rural areas into four tiers—Seoul, Gyeonggi/Incheon, metropolitan cities, and metropolitan provinces, based on the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's housing benefit standards ▲Raising the large city standards by incorporating 11 cities in Gyeonggi Province with populations of 500,000 or more, such as Suwon, currently classified as medium and small cities, into the large city area ▲Raising the large city standards by incorporating 19 cities in Gyeonggi Province with average housing transaction prices higher than metropolitan cities into the large city area.

Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung said, "The province's position is that residents should not be excluded from welfare benefits due to unreasonable deduction standards," and added, "We will continue to propose measures to improve the system to both the central government and the National Assembly."