• Korean Journal of Legislative Studies
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.85-123
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• 2020

Under representative democracy, members of the National Assembly exercise their authority to propose, enact, and revise bills on behalf of the people, and the legislation of such lawmakers has a great impact on individuals and society. There exist criticisms that the quality of legislator-sponsored bills has not improved while the number of them has been expanding recently. This study examines the type, productivity, and efficiency of legislation in the 17~19th National Assembly, and empirical analysis is conducted on how the lawmaker's legislations respond to election-related variables such as voter turnout and election competition. The results show that legislator-sponsored bills are mainly produced in the area of governance, finance, macroeconomic policy, social welfare, and health. The number of legislator's proposals increases, while the passing rate decreases, and the processing period extends. Constituents' participation in voting has been shown to enhance legislative efficiency. Based on the results, the paper emphasizes the enhancement of transparency in the legislative process, the improvement of the people's political knowledge, and the revitalization of election functions for the improvement of parliamentary legislation.