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| ▲ Prime Minister Han Duck-soo presides over an extraordinary Cabinet session on May 30, 2022. (Yonhap) |
Cabinet-extra budget
Cabinet endorses 62 tln-won extra budget
SEOUL, May 30 (Yonhap) -- The Cabinet on Monday approved a 62 trillion-won (US$49.4 billion) extra budget aimed mainly at helping small merchants affected by the pandemic.
The spending plan was passed at an extraordinary Cabinet session presided over by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.
The National Assembly passed the extra budget bill Sunday, just three days before the local elections.
The bill was approved in a plenary session after the ruling People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party agreed to add 2.6 trillion won to the 59.4 trillion won proposed by the government.
The largest-ever extra budget -- the first under the Yoon Suk-yeol government -- calls for a 39 trillion-won spending plan, including cash handouts to small merchants, and 23 trillion won in grants to regional governments.
Under the agreement, some 3.71 million merchants and micro business owners will be eligible for cash handouts of between 6 million won and 10 million won each.
The government will begin offering cash handouts later in the day as it pledges to swiftly allocate the budget.
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