The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus said it aims to pass special statutes governing the appropriation of subsidies and funds in Hualien County’s disaster-stricken Guangfu Township (光復) as well as 23 priority bills in this legislative session.
More than 1,500 homes in the town were damaged by flooding after a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) burst, triggered by rainfall brought by Super Typhoon Ragasa, the KMT caucus said.
The special budget plan is necessary, as it would help with the town’s recovery, it added.
The caucus also proposed amendments to articles 37 and 67 of the Act Governing Civil Servants’ Retirement, Discharge and Pensions (公務人員退休資遣撫卹法).
The proposed amendment to article 37 would require the government to stop decreasing year-on-year income replacement rate for civil servants, and adjust their pension whenever there is salary adjustment for the government employees.
The proposed amendment to article 67 would tie civil servants’ pensions to inflation, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI). It would stipulate that the monthly pension received by retired civil servants, as well as the monthly compensation or survivors’ annuity received by their surviving family members, be adjusted when the CPI’s cumulative growth rate increases or decreases 5 percent. The adjustment rate would be determined jointly by the Examination Yuan and the Executive Yuan, taking into consideration the nation’s economic conditions, government finances, and the funding ratio of the pension and compensation fund.
Photo: Taipei Times
In addition, the proposed amendments would stipulate that a review of the adjustment would be conducted at least once every four years.
Although some KMT legislators said the adjustment of civil servant pension funds would be triggered by cumulative CPI rate of 2 to 3 percent or minus-2 to minus-5 percent, the caucus has not declared its stance on the method and frequency of such adjustments.
Key amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) would clearly define the central government’s responsibilities regarding both general and project-based grants to local governments, the caucus said.
The aim is to prevent the Executive Yuan from “arbitrarily” cutting subsidies, and to reduce disputes between central and local authorities, it said.
The caucus also proposed a “draft act governing central government subsidies to special municipalities and county (city) governments,” which it said aims to codify the existing subsidy mechanisms. The proposed act would stipulate the total amount of centrally allocated revenue could not be lower than the amount allocated in the fiscal year preceding its enactment.
Other priority bills include draft acts on artificial intelligence, young people, news media and digital platforms, platform delivery management, and protection of workers’ rights.
They also include amendments to the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall (總統副總統選舉罷免法), Employment Services (就業服務法), Climate Change Response (氣候變遷因應法), Basic Environment (環境基本法), Road Traffic Management and Penalty (道路交通管理處罰條例), Soil and Water Conservation (水土保持法), Slopeland Conservation and Utilization (山坡地保育條例), Housing (住宅法), and Fraud Crime Hazard Prevention (詐欺犯罪危害防制條例) acts.
Meanwhile, the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) caucus said that its priority bills include an amendment to the Referendum Act (公民投票法) to allow referendums to be held alongside general elections, and a special law for absentee voting.
It said it would propose amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure (刑事訴訟法), particularly regarding the grounds for detention, and to the Environmental Impact Assessment Act (環境影響評估法) to prevent solar power development from damaging national land.
TPP legislative caucus director Chen Gau-tzu (陳昭姿) said the party would also push for a surrogacy bill as well as amendments to the Assisted Reproduction Act (人工生殖法) to include same-sex male couples.
Additional reporting by Lin Tse-yuan
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