Firefighters' Union Presents Plaque of Appreciation to Governor Choo Mi-ae…"Recognizes Efforts to Strengthen State Responsibility for Firefighting Finance"

Governor Choo Mi-ae of Gyeonggi Province, who has consistently called for strengthening the state's financial responsibility for nationally employed firefighters, received a plaque of appreciation from the firefighters' labor union.

According to the Gyeonggi Province government and others on the 10th, the Future Firefighters United Labor Union (hereinafter referred to as the Future Firefighters Union) presented a plaque of appreciation to Governor Choo at the "64th Fire Service Day Commemorative Ceremony" held on the previous day (9th) at the Gyeonggi Art Center in Suwon.

Through the plaque of appreciation, the union stated, "We appreciate the governor for consistently voicing concerns about the structural problem of firefighting budgets that excessively depend on local finance despite being nationally employed firefighters, and for making continuous efforts to secure stable budgets and strengthen state responsibility."

Previously, Governor Choo faced pushback from the union due to expressions used while explaining the financial burden on Gyeonggi Province. However, she has consistently argued that the unreasonable fiscal system—in which local governments bear a substantial portion of personnel and equipment costs for firefighters who have been converted to national employment—must be reformed.

This fiscal issue raised is being evaluated as having served as an impetus for the government and ruling party to recently discuss a plan to provide 2 trillion won in central government financing for essential investments in the firefighting sector.

Receiving the plaque of appreciation, Governor Choo emphasized, "National-level recognition and equipment support befitting firefighters' dedication to protecting citizens' lives and safety is essential. Beyond simple support, we will continue to advocate for changes in laws and systems so that the state can stably shoulder financial responsibility for the firefighting sector."