The Knesset Education Committee began holding meetings to prepare the law to provide chareidi institutions equal funding from the local authorities for second and third readings.
The committee received proposals by MKs Rabbi Ravitz and Rabbi Gafni, which were approved in a preliminary reading, and also the government’s proposal which was approved in a first reading last week. The plan is to combine the three proposals into one and to bring the combined proposal for a third reading.
The legislation being hammered out would require the local authorities to provide chareidi schools exactly the same funding that government schools receive.
During Monday’s committee meeting Amnon de Hartoch, who serves as support payments commissioner at the Justice Ministry, tried to keep the funding for chareidi education as support payments rather than as part of regular budgets, but the chareidi MKs present lodged staunch opposition, saying the support payments could still be given through the local authority’s support committee without any special legislation. The administrative rulings of de Hartoch (who is religious) set off the current legislation since he raised difficulties in the funding that local authorities provided for religious schools under the old system that had been functioning for decades.
Only after speaking on the phone with the Attorney General did de Hartoch agree to provide funding for chareidi schools through regular budget channels.
The high-pitched meeting was riddled with arguments over various clauses surrounding the law, but eventually the committee’s legal advisor was asked to draft the law for final approval in such a way that it would be clearly identified as full funding, explicitly calling for coverage of all needs of the chareidi education system, including secretaries, cleaning services, electricity, etc.
A demand was also made to make the law extend to talmudei Torah rather than just “recognized but unofficial” schools. The discussion surrounding this demand is scheduled to resume at the next committee meeting.
(Dei’ah veDibur)
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3 Responses
This will be a breakthrough for other Torah schools to open that do not have any political connection to any party (eg. UTJ, NRP or Shas). A group of American rebbeim and parents wanted to start a school in RBS, but due to zero govt funding can not get it off the ground. This new ruling will be the chance they have been waiting for, Frum education not political, is it possible?
It is about time! I am sick and tired of the Israeli government pretending the Chareidim don’t exist. I am not surprised. The Israeli politicians would like to pretend that there is not Torah either, Chas V’shalom!
flatbub
its a 2way street, and the Torah community pretends that the secular state does not exist. A day after a horrific bus bombing of Jews in central Israel, a request was made at a huge Torah shiur to be mispalell for refuah shelama for the injuried, the answer was NO, this is not our agenda!