Chen Pin-an promotes Miaoli Future Fund, youth account to win county race

The Democratic Progressive Party candidate for Miaoli County magistrate, Chen Pin‑an, today formally presented a high‑profile local governance and welfare policy blueprint. He argues that, if elected to lead Miaoli County, he will pursue the establishment of a “Miaoli Future Fund” with a total scale of NT$10 billion, alongside the creation of a “Children and Youth Growth Account” aimed at nurturing the next generation. The proposal focuses on sustainable fiscal planning, investment in human capital for children and adolescents, and core social issues such as long‑term care and youth retention, seeking to chart a new development path for Miaoli, which has long faced fiscal constraints and population outflow.

Regarding the Miaoli Future Fund, Chen proposes NT$10 billion as the initial capital. Citing past concerns that large local government funds or public‑works projects have sometimes been accompanied by financial risk, rent‑seeking, or mismanagement, he emphasizes the need for a rigorous institutional safeguard. The fund’s operation will incorporate a three‑layer protection system covering review mechanisms, information disclosure, and independent oversight, designed to prevent any form of market manipulation or favoritism. Through prudent and transparent professional investment and fund management, the earnings and returns generated will not be idle or one‑time expenditures; instead, they will be channeled long‑term and steadily into key policy areas such as expanding long‑term care services, supporting youth entrepreneurship, and enhancing employment opportunities, thereby maximizing the impact of local fiscal resources.

In addition to the macro‑level development fund, the policy blueprint’s component that has drawn the most attention from parents and young people is the Children and Youth Growth Account. Under the plan, the account will target children and adolescents aged 0 to 18 who are registered and actually residing in Miaoli County. The county government will allocate a stable NT$1,000 per month per eligible child as welfare support. This measure effectively creates an asset‑accumulation account for each child from early childhood onward; when the beneficiaries reach adulthood, they may withdraw the accumulated balance in a single lump sum. The post‑graduation capital could be used for continuing education tuition, housing and living expenses, or as seed money for future career‑related entrepreneurship, thereby easing the economic burden on young people and low‑income families.

Viewed within the broader context of Taiwan’s local autonomy and regional development, Chen’s proposals directly address the structural challenges that have long plagued Miaoli County. Persistent fiscal discipline constraints and insufficient locally generated revenue have left the county chronically under‑funded in social welfare, child‑care, long‑term care, and youth initiatives, making it difficult to keep pace with the six special municipalities and other better‑funded jurisdictions. These financial shortfalls have contributed to a severe outflow of working‑age residents, compounded by low birth rates and an aging population. By establishing the Miaoli Future Fund together with the Children and Youth Growth Account, the plan seeks not only a strategic reallocation of limited fiscal resources but also to send a clear political signal of investing in the future and retaining talent, aiming to reverse Miaoli’s marginalization in Taiwan’s overall regional competition.

The introduction of this policy also signals an elevation in the policy discourse of the Miaoli magistrate race, shifting from traditional political sloganeering toward substantive fiscal planning and social‑welfare competition. How the NT$10 billion seed capital will be raised, the concrete legal and implementation details of the three‑layer protection system, the allocation ratios between long‑term care and youth policies, and the financial sustainability assessment of the Children and Youth Growth Account will undoubtedly become focal points of scrutiny and debate. For Miaoli residents who have long sought change and a stable, prosperous life, the practical realization of these proposals and their capacity to deliver a leap‑forward improvement for the locality will be a key criterion in voters’ rational evaluation at the ballot box.

(Source: Central News Agency)