Government's Priorities Perpetuate Poverty in Arab Municipalities

A State Comptroller report reveals that the Interior Ministry prevents the establishment of joint employment zones for Arabs and Jews, thereby perpetuating gaps in property tax revenues. The gap between Jewish and Arab municipalities reaches up to 80% versus 8.4%. Requests for boundary changes are rejected or delayed for years, and the government has scaled back the five-year plan for economic development in the Arab sector.

A State Comptroller report from June 2026 exposes a government policy that perpetuates economic gaps between Arab and Jewish municipalities. In November 2025, the National Council for Planning and Building canceled a plan for an employment zone covering 1,400 dunams near Lehavot Haviva, which was intended to benefit Baqa al-Gharbiyye and Jatt. The report states that the cancellation is not coincidental but part of a policy: the Interior Ministry prevents the establishment of joint employment zones. The gap in property tax revenues is enormous: central cities enjoy 74%-80% self-generated revenues, while in Arab localities such as Jaljulia and Tira, the rate ranges from 8.4% to 39%. In Arab municipalities, 68% of property tax revenues come from residential use and only 32% from employment, compared to 44% and 56% in Jewish municipalities. Requests for boundary changes, such as Kafr Kanna's from 2017, have not been advanced. The Interior Ministry explains the delays by citing a "comprehensive spatial vision" and elections. The government has also scaled back the five-year plan for economic development in the Arab sector. The author, Guy Nardi, is the housing and land coordinator at the Sikkuy-Aufoq association.