During a discussion in the Knesset Finance Committee addressing an exemption in arnona property tax for batei medrashim, MK (Yesh Atid) Aliza Lavie added this must include batei medrashim in which only women study as well as non-Orthodox ones.

A pending bill calls for granting an exemption for the tax to a beis medrash in addition to a shul. The bill intends to amend a 2012 law which grants an exemption from arnona for shuls, but not those in which there are shiurim, such as a beis medrash.

Initiating the bill are MKs Yoav Ben-Tzur (Shas) and Menachem Eliezer Moses (Yahadut Hatorah).

When the matter of Islamic or Christian houses of worship was raised, MK Ben-Tzur stated “After checking into the matter, we learned such institutes are almost non-existent in those communities. They are already exempt of have reductions as in some cases, they are in schools and they do not have a beis medrash like we have and therefore, this amendment is not necessary for them”.

However, Lavie called for amending the language of the bill to make certain it does apply to a women’s beis medrash as well as a non-Orthodox beis medrash. “There have been women’s batei medrash since the 1500s” she explained. Lavie added “I don’t want to find myself in a situation that after the bill is passed into law I learn it does not apply to a women’s beis medrash. Today there are shuls that are also a women’s beis medrash, institutions that are releasing learned women and we want to avoid leaving them in an undefined category”.

Committee Chair Moshe Gafne explained Lavie’s “reservations are unnecessary because if there is a shul, it is exempt from paying arnona or at the very least, receiving a reduction in arnona tax and this is in accordance to the existing law”. He referred her to the committee legal counsel, adding if she insists on amending the language as she states, he will object to it and it will be dropped.

The Union of Local Authorities Chief Economist, Hila Zahavi, has called on the committee for defining what a shul is, pointing out that granting exemptions are costly for local government. Zahavi asked if a ‘shul’ is categorized by any place there is a minyan and a sefer Torah.

Gafne explained he is going to ask the Interior Ministry to determine if the other religions have buildings that fall into the category of a beis medrash. Gafne pushed the vote on the matter off for two weeks.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)