Parliamentary Select Committee on Cryptocurrency Transparency Bill Passed by the National Assembly
The process has begun…but the implementation date is 6 months away
Civil society organizations “too late…must be implemented immediately”
A series of bills to transparently disclose virtual assets (coins) held by lawmakers, the so-called “Kim Nam-gook Prevention Act,” have been passed by parliamentary subcommittees, but the timing of the disclosure of virtual asset holdings by active lawmakers remains uncertain. At the latest, it is expected to be disclosed in March next year, which is the usual time for public officials to disclose their assets, which has been criticized as “too late.”
Nam In-soon, chairman of the National Assembly’s special committee on political reform, taps his gavel during a plenary session of the special committee on political reform at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the afternoon of Feb. 22. On the day, the committee dealt with a bill to amend the National Assembly Act to include virtual assets (cryptocurrencies) such as “coins” in the “private interest registration” of lawmakers under the current law. /News1
On June 22, the National Assembly’s Special Committee on Political Reform held its first subcommittee on bill review and unanimously voted to amend the National Assembly Act to include virtual assets in the assets of lawmakers who are required to register with the National Assembly Ethics Review and Advisory Committee. The committee also created a special provision to require the 21st generation of active lawmakers to register their virtual asset holdings and changes with the Ethics Review and Advisory Committee by the end of June.
The Public Administration and Security Committee also held a bill review subcommittee on the afternoon of the same day to review and process an amendment to the Public Officials’ Ethics Act to include virtual assets as assets to be reported by high-ranking public officials. It is planned to go to the plenary session on April 24.
While the process of the bill to require lawmakers to disclose their virtual asset wealth is speeding up, it is unclear when active lawmakers will be able to disclose their virtual asset holdings.
First, the amendment to the National Assembly Act, which was passed by the parliamentary special committee, requires lawmakers-elect and the 21st active legislators to register and report their property details, including virtual assets, to the Ethics Review Advisory Committee, but whether to disclose them is determined by the National Assembly Rules. The National Assembly rules are under discussion.
Kim Kyo-heung, chairman of the National Assembly’s subcommittee on administration and security, listens to a protest by members of the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Pan-National Promotion Council on the proposed amendment to the Gangwon Special Law ahead of the first subcommittee on bill review at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on Feb. 22. /news1
The amendment to the Public Officials Ethics Act, which passed the subcommittee안전놀이터, is also not expected to quickly disclose the details of virtual assets held by lawmakers. Representative Kim Kyo-heung, an opposition member of the parliamentary committee, met with reporters after the afternoon meeting on the previous day (22nd) and said, “We have to organize programs, so we set the implementation date (of the amendment to the Public Officials Ethics Act) to six months after publication. The implementation date will be around early December,” he said.
According to Article 6 of the Public Officials’ Ethics Act, lawmakers and others who are obligated to register must report their property changes from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 each year to the registrar by Feb. 28, the end of the following February. Then, according to Article 10 of the Public Officials’ Ethics Act, changes in the assets of lawmakers must be disclosed in the Official Gazette or Gazette in March, within one month after the reporting period expires.
As a result, it has been pointed out that it is necessary to revise whether or not the details of lawmakers’ virtual assets should be disclosed. “I think it’s a bit insufficient that the Ethics in Public Service Act passed the National Assembly yesterday, so I asked the secretary of the National Assembly to come up with an amendment,” said Yoon Jae-ok on March 23. “Public interest is very high right now, especially for lawmakers, and enforcement six months after promulgation is not (appropriate),” he said.
“As soon as possible, within a month or two, there should be an amendment to the amendment to the Public Officials’ Ethics Act to allow lawmakers to register their virtual assets as of the end of last year as public officials’ property,” Yoon said.
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Jeon Jae-soo, who chairs the subcommittee, told Chosun Biz, “We should definitely go in the direction of disclosing it to the public,” adding, “We should quickly set the parliamentary rules.” “We are supposed to report (virtual assets) to the National Assembly by June 30,” the lawmaker said, adding, “If the National Assembly rules are enacted, it will be disclosed in July.”
Meanwhile, the Citizens’ Union for the Practice of Economic Justice pointed out in a commentary on June 23 that the effective date of the amendment to the Public Officials’ Ethics Act, which was voted on in a subcommittee of the National Assembly, is “too late.” “As suspicions regarding the possession of virtual assets by incumbent lawmakers are amplifying, the amended law should be implemented immediately, and the registration of virtual assets should be prioritized according to the implemented law.”