Government Organization Act Passes National Assembly Led by Ruling Party...Prosecutor's Office Abolished After 78 Years, Ministry of Economy and Finance Split

Ministry of Economy and Finance Reorganized into Ministry of Finance and Economy and Ministry of Planning and Budget...Ministry of Environment Reformed into Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment

Vote Held After Forced Termination of Filibuster...Broadcasting, Media, and Communications Committee Establishment Act and Others to Be Considered

Rep. Park Soo-min continues filibuster for over 13 hours (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Joo-seong = People Power Party lawmaker Park Soo-min is continuing a filibuster (legal obstruction of parliamentary proceedings for unlimited debate) on the amendment to the Government Organization Act for over 13 hours at the plenary session of the National Assembly on the 26th. 2025.9.26 utzza@yna.co.kr

The National Assembly passed an amendment to the Government Organization Act, which includes the abolition of the Prosecutor's Office, in a plenary session on the 26th, led by the ruling party.

The amendment to the Government Organization Act was passed at the plenary session with 174 votes in favor, 1 vote against, and 5 abstentions out of 180 attending lawmakers.

Lawmakers of the ruling Democratic Party cast affirmative votes, while the People Power Party, which opposed the bill, abstained from the vote.

Lawmakers Shin Jang-sik, Cha Gyu-geun, and Baek Sun-hee of the Cho Kuk Innovation Party abstained from voting, and lawmaker Cheon Ha-ram of the Reform Party cast a dissenting vote.

The amendment abolishes the Prosecutor's Office and establishes the Major Crimes Investigation Agency (MCIA) and the Prosecution Agency, separating the investigative and prosecutorial functions of the prosecution.

The MCIA will be under the Minister of the Interior and Safety, and the Prosecution Agency will be under the Minister of Justice.

A one-year grace period will be given for the abolition of the Prosecutor's Office and the establishment of the MCIA and Prosecution Agency.

Accordingly, the Prosecutor's Office will be closed after 78 years of operation next September.

The amendment also includes provisions to split the Ministry of Economy and Finance into the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Planning and Budget, and to transfer the budget functions of the Ministry of Economy and Finance to the Ministry of Planning and Budget under the Prime Minister's Office. This will take effect from January 2nd of next year.

Consequently, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, established in 2008 by merging the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Planning and Budget from before 2008, will cease to exist after 18 years.

The reorganization of the Financial Services Commission, originally planned by the Democratic Party, was excluded from this amendment.

The domestic financial policy functions of the Financial Services Commission, which were initially intended to be transferred to the Ministry of Finance and Economy, will continue to be handled by the existing Financial Services Commission. The Financial Supervisory Service will also remain under its current structure.

The amendment also includes the abolition of the Korea Communications Commission and the establishment of the Broadcasting, Media, and Communications Committee.

The Ministry of Environment will be reformed into the Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment, and energy-related affairs, excluding the nuclear power export sector from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, will be transferred to the Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will be renamed the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will be renamed the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and the Statistics Korea and the Korean Intellectual Property Office will be elevated to the National Data Office and the Intellectual Property Office, respectively, under the Prime Minister.

The position of Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs, previously held concurrently by the Minister of Education, will be abolished, while the Minister of Economy and Finance and the Minister of Science and ICT will each concurrently hold the position of Deputy Prime Minister.

The amendment was brought to the floor of the National Assembly the previous day, but a filibuster (legal obstruction of parliamentary proceedings through unlimited debate) began immediately after its introduction at the request of the People Power Party.

In response, the Democratic Party submitted a motion to terminate the filibuster, and a vote on the termination of debate was held around 6:30 PM on this day, 24 hours after the filibuster began.

The Democratic Party plans to sequentially process the bill to establish the Broadcasting, Media, and Communications Committee, the amendment to the National Assembly Act, and the National Assembly Testimony and Audit Act. However, the People Power Party intends to immediately launch a filibuster on these bills as well. Yonhap News