A strike spread across many of the largest and wealthiest cities in Israel on Monday in protest against a plan to redistribute tax allocations, opening a new front for a government already under pressure due to controversial judicial reforms.
The dispute centers around a proposal to create a fund that could draw from the property tax collected by municipalities, with the fund's money then redistributed across Israel as an incentive for building more residential properties.
The government claims that the fund will help alleviate the housing shortage and reduce costs, which have risen over the past 15 years due to strong demand and limited supply. City councils, which have not yet decided how long the strike will last, view this as federal intervention that "will ultimately be ineffective."
Chaim Bibas, the mayor of Modiin in central Israel and head of the Federation of Local Authorities, stated, "We will fight for the rights of our residents," adding, "It is not our role to finance the budget to solve the country's crises."
The strike has drawn participation from over 70 cities, including the major commercial hubs of Tel Aviv and Haifa, which are set to contribute more to the property tax fund, while Jerusalem, the largest municipality in Israel that heavily relies on government funding due to its relatively impoverished population, did not join the strike.
In this context, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich affirmed that he "will not yield to pressure and that the property tax fund will be approved" as part of the 2023-2024 budget law.
Smotrich remarked at a press conference just hours before the strike commenced, "Unfortunately, some federation leaders and mayors are waging a battle against you, against us, and against anyone who wants to reduce housing costs."
Parliament has already granted initial approval for the 2023-2024 budget, but it still requires further approval from MPs in two additional votes.
This strike, which impacts the lives of millions of Israelis due to school closures and halted garbage collection, also coincides with discussions on the state budget for 2023-2024. Should the budget not be ratified by the end of the month, new elections may be required.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which came to power at the end of last year, is already facing large protests over proposed judicial reforms. Tens of thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets weekly to object to Netanyahu's push to grant politicians greater influence in selecting judges and limit the Supreme Court's authority to overturn laws. Netanyahu has been forced to temporarily suspend these plans under pressure from both within and outside the country.
