South Korea's school superintendents push back against plans to restructure 80-trillion-won education fund

Jung Geun-sik, chairman of the Korean Council of Superintendents of Education and superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, pushed back Friday against government discussions on restructuring the local education finance grant system, declaring that "the number of students may be falling, but education has never shrunk" and calling for the current structure — which automatically allocates 20.79% of national tax revenue to regional education offices — to be preserved.

Jung made the remarks in an opening address at an emergency meeting of the council's superintendents on local education finance, held Friday morning at the council's main conference room.

"Since pan-government discussions on fiscal decentralization began earlier this year without adequate participation from regional education offices, one-sided criticism of education finance has continued," he said. "Some are spreading the perception that education finance is excessive by pointing only to declining student numbers — but that argument fails to reflect the reality of public education today."

He added that public education's responsibilities are in fact growing, citing foundational literacy, student mental health, special education, multicultural education, digital transformation, school safety and the integration of childcare and early education. "That is where any discussion of local education finance must begin," he said.

In recent months, discussions inside and outside the government have centered on using additional tax revenue generated by the semiconductor boom to create a future-response fund that would support balanced regional development, youth policy, and early childhood, higher and lifelong education. Under the current system, 20.79% of national tax revenue is automatically distributed to regional education offices; next year's allocation is projected to exceed 80 trillion won ($53.2 billion). Jung said he could not deny the state's need for new fiscal resources to prepare for the future, but added that he was "deeply concerned that education finance — which has been stably secured — may be the first target for adjustment as the government seeks new funding sources."

He went on to say that if the government intends to strengthen national responsibility for early childhood, higher and lifelong education, regional education offices are prepared to take on greater educational responsibilities alongside it. "The premise must not be cutting education finance, but expanding and redesigning it to meet the needs of future education," he said.

The meeting reviewed the results of a public forum on education finance restructuring held Wednesday, and discussed how to respond to the government's proposed reform. Education authorities have put forward a plan that would retain the current structure of allocating 20.79% of national tax revenue as grants, but set a cap on annual increases based on the previous year's grant level, national fiscal conditions and changes in the school-age population — with any surplus funds set aside in a reserve. Those accumulated funds would then be invested in other areas of education, including early childhood and higher education.

The Ministry of Planning and Budget, by contrast, is considering scrapping the 20.79% linkage altogether and recalculating grant levels based on nominal growth rates and changes in the school-age population. Regional education offices warn that such an approach could sharply reduce their actual fiscal capacity when fixed annual costs such as teacher and staff salaries are taken into account.

The superintendents also discussed holding a public hearing — with participation from government ministers, National Assembly members, experts, and teacher and parent groups — to scrutinize the problems with the proposed restructuring. The aim is to formally present the education community's position ahead of the national fiscal strategy conference and ensure that regional education offices have a voice in the government's deliberations.

"Today we have not gathered merely to defend the local education finance grant," Jung said. "This is a forum to discuss together how to design the future of education finance, what additional responsibilities education offices should take on, and how to answer the public's demands for fiscal efficiency and accountability."

He said the meeting would address why the stable education finance structure tied to 20.79% of national tax revenue must be maintained, what new areas regional education offices should take responsibility for, and what steps should be taken first to improve the efficiency and transparency of local education finance.

Following the meeting, the council plans to release an emergency statement reflecting the positions of all 17 regional education offices nationwide and to deliver the superintendents' joint stance to both the government and the National Assembly.