Mkalb Says State Underfunds Religious Councils Compared With Other Public Services

A heated session of the Knesset Finance Committee on Tuesday focused on how local authorities help fund religious councils, and quickly turned into a broader argument over state policy toward religious services. United Torah Judaism lawmaker and faction chair Uri Mkalb attacked the existing budget model, saying it unfairly shifts the burden onto municipalities, especially weaker ones.

The committee approved the participation rates for local authorities in the religious councils budget, with about 36 million shekels to be transferred from stronger municipalities to weaker ones. The decision keeps the overall budget unchanged, but sets different payment levels for local councils in 2026. Stronger authorities will pay a larger share, while weaker ones will pay between 25% and 75%.

Mkalb asked, “Is there any other area where the state’s participation is this low?” He said that in education, welfare and other public services, the government covers most costs, but religious services still depend heavily on local funding. “When it comes to education, welfare and other public services the state funds most of the costs,” he said, “but in religious services we have to fight every year again for the budgets and even for the existence of the services.”

He argued that the arrangement has long hurt the development and expansion of religious services, and that poorer municipalities struggle most to meet their share. In his words, “Marriage, burial, mikvahs, kashrut and rabbinical services are not luxuries. These are basic services every citizen is entitled to.” Government representatives said the mechanism is set by law and was determined together with the Finance Ministry, Interior Ministry and Religious Services Ministry. United Torah Judaism said the approval followed long work with ministries to keep the councils operating properly nationwide.