Finance Committee Chair Pushes 393 Million Shekel Budget Vote Despite Opposition and Legal Concerns

Hanoch Milwitsky, chairman of the Knesset Finance Committee and a member of Likud, insists on holding a vote today on a 393 million shekel budget request for the Prime Minister's Office, despite opposition from committee members and legal advisor Shlomit Arlich. Milwitsky justified the urgency by noting the Knesset will soon enter an election recess. The budget request includes 90 million shekels for security upgrades at the Prime Minister's Office, 100 million for the national public diplomacy system, 25 million for the "Kanaf Zion" aircraft, and 8.1 million for the security of former minister Ron Dermer.

The Finance Committee has a procedure requiring budget requests to be submitted with full details and legal approval before members review them. However, this request was scheduled for discussion without the necessary documentation. Arlich noted that the Finance Ministry submitted the request only the previous afternoon and was asked to provide missing details, including budget sources and relevant government decisions. Milwitsky ordered the request to be placed on today's agenda before members could examine the materials.

Opposition members Vladimir Beliak and Naor Shiri from Yesh Atid demanded the legal advisor halt the process, arguing it violates committee rules and that receiving supplementary information just hours before the vote is unreasonable. Beliak emphasized the procedure exists to allow proper review and criticized the chairman for disregarding it. Treasury representatives explained that security for current and former ministers is determined by security agencies based on threat assessments, with annual costs ranging from 3 to 12 million shekels per minister. Shiri questioned the 8 million shekel security cost for Dermer, while Beliak cited a total ministerial security budget of about 30 million shekels annually.

The opposition also criticized the proposed 100 million shekel increase for the Prime Minister's Office public diplomacy system, which already receives 8 million shekels for operational expenses and is funded by the Foreign Ministry's half-billion shekel budget for public diplomacy. Orit Farkash-Hacohen called the increase excessive for a system she said has failed. The Prime Minister's Office explained the funds would support real-time messaging platforms to counter disinformation, in-depth research, outreach to evangelical audiences, narrative strengthening among opinion leaders, and activities targeting specific U.S. communities.

Additionally, 25 million shekels are proposed for the Hostages Administration to support personnel assisting families and captives, up from a 15 million shekel budget for 2026. Naama Lazimi from the Labor party described the process as flawed and irregular, demanding the vote be postponed until explanations are provided. Milwitsky stated that if the Knesset plenary adjourns today, he will reconvene the committee for further discussion on the requests.