Politics

2026 General Budget Stalls Amid Government Crisis

Published

By Patrick Chen/Tiffany Wong

Open in App

The executive and the legislature are at odds over the 2026 general budget. Cabinet ministers are urging lawmakers to approve the budget fast, before the delay impacts public programs. But opposition lawmakers are reluctant to move forward amid a constitutional crisis.

REPORTER:  

Just days before the new year, $9.5 billion US dollars of funding for Taiwan’s government is stuck in limbo. If lawmakers cannot agree on the Cabinet’s proposed budget in time, the statistics bureau says major programs could be impacted.

 

Chen Shu-tzu (MINISTER, DGBAS):  

[Disruptions to] river drainage improvement projects could seriously impact local disaster response and increase the risk of flooding. Also, [delays in the US$320 million] set aside for the 10 AI infrastructure development projects could affect the speed of companies’ development and the introduction of AI public services in the country. And [delays to the US$240 million] for the TPASS [public transportation program] could affect more than 980,000 commuters across the country each month.

 

REPORTER:  

The budget bottleneck comes amid intense political feuding, kicked off after Premier Cho Jung-tai blocked an opposition-backed local government funding bill from taking effect. And while lawmakers can make changes to the general budget, the opposition says the Premier could reject their version again.

 

Lin Te-fu (LEGISLATOR, KMT):  

The revised Government Revenue Distribution Act already passed three readings in the legislature. The premier’s refusal to countersign is now creating constitutional controversy. He’s added [US$9.5 billion] to the 2026 general budget potentially hindering the nation’s overall progress in an attempt to smear opposition lawmakers.

 

REPORTER:  

The standoff has seen opposition lawmakers take drastic action, moving forward with proposals to impeach the premier and President Lai Ching-te. But their colleagues in the ruling Democratic Progressive Party are urging them to put aside differences for now and pass the budget. They say not doing so would hurt the country’s social programs.

 

Rosalia Wu (LEGISLATOR, DPP):  

The maternity allowance of [US$3,000] will be unavailable. Second, the parental leave subsidy will also be stopped. Everyone says it’s a good policy so why isn’t there budget for it? And third, after children are born we need to improve public childcare services. But the budget for improving childcare facilities has also been completely cut.

 

REPORTER:  

With Taiwan’s government at a standstill, the legislature is running out of time to move forward on a budget bill, putting everything from disaster relief to childcare at risk.