The Knesset plenum voted 45-1 in favor of a government-
sponsored bill regarding funding by local authorities for
"recognized by unofficial" educational institutions in a
first reading on Monday. Virtually all institutions with that
status are chareidi.
The proposal was supported by coalition parties Kadima, Shas,
Yisrael Beiteinu and Labor; as well as opposition parties
UTJ, HaIchud HaLeumi/NRP and the Likud — and even Arab
parties. Only Meretz voted no.
Initiated by Minister Meshulam Nahari of Shas, the proposal
would require local authorities to provide chareidi
educational institutions defined as "recognized by
unofficial" (i.e. Chinuch Atzmai and Maayan Hachinuch
HaTorani) the same level of funding that government schools
receive. For the first time this would anchor government
support of chareidi educational institutions in legislation
and as part of the regular budgeting process.
The need for the proposed law arose following a Justice
Ministry directive to the local authorities to fund the
chareidi education system exclusively through the Education
Ministry's Support Committee, and not also from the local
authority budget as had been done up until then. As a result
of the move many chareidi institutions were left without
heating, electricity, cleaning services, and the like which
had been provided out of the budgets of the local authorities
and not the national Education Ministry.
PM Ehud Olmert made a point of attending the deliberations
and the vote on the proposal to show the importance he
attaches to the matter.
Finance Minister Nahari presented the law in the name of the
government, saying it rectifies a longstanding injustice. He
noted that the money would not come from state coffers but
from local authorities, whose budgets consist of money
collected from every citizen — including chareidi
citizens — in the form of local property taxes
(arnona). "The obligations [to pay] are equal but the
rights are not equal. The [local] authority funds all
children sent to government schools, but does not fund on a
regular basis those who study in the recognized but
unofficial system. And still the government education system
will have preferential treatment, for the law states that
local authority budgeting will be according to Education
Ministry funding — and the Education Ministry shows
favoritism toward the government educational system."
Before the vote MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni said although the
government and Minister Nahari should be commended for
bringing the law for a first reading, the law has a long way
to go. "The legal advisors [of government ministries and of
local authorities] will try various ways to impede it and
today they are the ones controlling the country. Why did this
proposed law come into the world? After all, for years there
was no problem with the local authorities. And then along
came the head of support funding at the Justice Ministry and
determined in a reply to the High Court that the chareidi
education system does not deserve to receive anything from
the local authorities."
Rabbi Gafni cited an incident that took place before Pesach
at the Chinuch Atzmai school in Ohr Yehuda, where the
electricity was turned off. When the Education Minister
ordered the local authority to reconnect it, the local
authority said the directive from the Justice Ministry's head
of support funding prevented it from doing so. The Prime
Minister himself had to intervene in order to deal with the
involvement of the legal advisors. "There's a limit to how
much we are willing to be in this Gehennom," said MK Gafni.
"The legal advisors are controlling you. They tell you what
to do. The government is not in control. I could talk for
days on end about this Gehennom we're living in because of
the legal advisors."
The Knesset also approved a proposal by MKs Rabbi Avrohom
Ravitz and Rabbi Moshe Gafni to make budget equality
guidelines apply to "exempt" institutions (e.g. talmudei
Torah) as well. "Recognized by unofficial" educational
institutions include the Bais Yaakov schools, the Shas-
sponsored Ma'ayan HaChinuch HaTorani, and Chinuch Atzmai
schools. They get almost all of their funding from the
government (the national Education Ministry and local
authorities). Since they compete directly with the free
government schools, they generally do not charge tuition,
though they do raise funding from private donors. "Exempt"
institutions include the talmud Torah chadorim for
boys which get a lesser but still large proportion of their
budget from the government. They generally supplement their
government income by charging tuition and fundraising.
According to Rabbi Gafni, Rabbi Ravitz notified the Education
Committee, which discussed the proposed law, that the
privately-sponsored laws would be combined with Minister
Nahari's Government Education Law. "I reached an agreement
with Minister Nahari that we would make an effort in the
committee to have the law apply to all institutions in
accordance with the Education Ministry budget, but we would
not hold up the approval of the laws in these talks," said
Rabbi Gafni.
