Knesset Legal Advisor Clashes with Budget Department Over Retroactive Budget Transfers

A sharp dispute has emerged between Knesset legal advisor Sagit Afek and the Budget Department regarding the approval of retroactive budget transfers. The conflict arose after a petition to the Supreme Court concerning budget transfers to ultra-Orthodox education revealed that the Finance Ministry was allocating funds before receiving approval from the Knesset Finance Committee. Afek warned that any requests to approve transfers after payments have been made would be illegal under the law, which requires prior committee approval.

In May, a request was submitted to transfer funds from the Prime Minister's Office to the Authority for Socioeconomic Development of the Haredi community, noting that payment had already been made before committee approval, thus exceeding the approved budget. Afek advised the Finance Committee not to discuss this request. Subsequently, the Budget Department reportedly pressured the government office to seek committee approval retroactively by freezing other funds, a move Afek condemned as unlawful bullying that paralyzes government ministries and forces illegal retroactive approvals.

In response, Deputy Budget Director Tamar Levi-Bona accused Afek of making inaccurate and inflammatory claims against civil servants, expressing surprise at such statements from a senior legal official. Levi-Bona explained that the budget overrun of 7 million shekels was due to unpredictable expenses in a relatively new unit and that the department acted promptly to correct the issue by requesting committee approval to cover the overrun. She emphasized these cases were rare and not standard practice.

Despite efforts to find a solution, the Finance Committee has not yet discussed the request for two months. Levi-Bona stressed that any continued funding requires full coverage of the budget overrun and that the government cannot bypass this requirement. The dispute highlights tensions between legal constraints and budgetary management within the Israeli government.