Reconciling Statutory Interpretation with Legislation: The MOLEG’s Statutory Interpretation of the So-called ‘Yellow Bus Case’
Authors: Choi Dae-Hyeon ,   Center for Legislative Studies, Gyeongin National University of Education
Published: July 2024

In 2022, The Ministry of Government Legislation(MOLEG) received a request for an official interpretation of Article 2, Paragraph 23 of the former Road Traffic Act. The reason for the official interpretation was that according to the legislative history and purpose of the revision of the Road Traffic Act, the scope of protection had been expanded, and therefore, the conceptual indicator of “children’s school buses”, which are “used for commuting, etc. of children”, included field trips in emergency situations. Thus, the reporting requirement for children’s school buses was deemed applicable. The concern on the ground was the responsibility of the executive agency in handling tasks following the official response to legal inquiries. Even if they do not follow the interpretation guidelines or responses to inquiries regarding laws and regulations issued by the central administrative agency in charge, or the interpretations of the legal interpretation agency, the central administrative agency can hold them accountable through its supervisory function(Chapter 9 of the Local Autonomy Act) and audits by the Board of Audit and Inspection. Due to this concern, it is difficult for executive agencies to carry out enforcement that contradicts the results of legal inquiries combined with supervisory functions before judicial decisions. As a result, contracts for field trip transportation services that had been made by charter bus companies in response to irregular demands were canceled, leading to penalties and disruptions in school schedules. The official interpretation by the MOLEG is an interpretation of laws and regulations aimed at ensuring consistency among executive agencies. However, this interpretation has resulted in an obligation for charter bus companies to comply with the reporting requirements for children’s school buses when transporting students for field trips, which could be seen as an infringement on legislative power under the separation of powers. The MOLEG’s official interpretation(hereinafter referred to as the “children’s school bus interpretation”) regarding the subject and obligations of reporting children’s school buses under the former Road Traffic Act expanded the scope of the norm, resulting in a gap between execution and reality. While the MOLEG aimed to provide consistent standards for policy implementation and ensure legal stability and predictability for citizens, it ironically produced the opposite result. By focusing solely on literal and systematic interpretations, the interpretation expected from the central administrative agency, which is more capable of making purposeful judgments than the judicial branch, ultimately contradicted substantive due process of law. This raises the question of why this occurred and calls for an examination of the meaning and limitations of official interpretations. Contemporary society is complex and pluralistic, and the phenomenon of an administrative state resulting from this complexity is likely to increase the demand for official interpretations. In some cases, administrative interpretations by state agencies may restrict fundamental rights or impose obligations in accordance with regulations. Rather than emphasizing the classical view of the separation of powers, this study aims to find solutions based on realistic and substantive due process of law (legislative interpretation provisions, legislative impact analysis system, and administrative advance notice).