Knesset advances bills easing way for political appointments at state companies

Coalition lawmakers voted on Wednesday to advance a pair of controversial bills intended to give the cabinet greater control over senior appointments at government corporations despite strong opposition from the Attorney General’s Office.

The first bill, which passed a preliminary reading 46-35, would allow ministers to directly nominate candidates of their choice, including those who do not have the necessary educational and experience qualifications.

Under the current system, ministers nominate candidates from a pool of qualified candidates who are screened and vetted by an independent committee.

Sponsored by Likud MK Avichai Boaron, the legislation would also narrow the definition of political, personal and business ties that disqualify a candidate, and allow the relevant ministers to appoint the head of the committee vetting the suitability of their chosen candidate.

The bill’s explanatory notes assert that its purpose is aimed at ensuring “representation of people from the social and geographical periphery in government companies.”

The bill will now move to the Knesset House Committee to determine which committee should prepare it for the next three readings necessary for it to become law.

In a statement last month, the Attorney General’s Office slammed Boaron’s bill, declaring that it would “turn government companies into a pool of positions for the appointment of insiders.”

Such changes “harm the professionalism of the companies’ management and will harm the perception of their credibility and professionalism in the competitive business environment in Israel and abroad,” causing economic damage, the statement said.

Boaron’s bill is identical to a proposal by Regional Cooperation Minister David Amsalem, who has been pushing to overhaul the current appointments system. Amsalem’s efforts led then-Government Companies Authority director Michal Rosenbaum to allege in 2023 that he was working to make illegitimate and political appointments at dozens of government companies.

Addressing lawmakers ahead of Wednesday’s vote, Amsalem called on Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon not to oppose the bill, which he argued would ensure that everything was “done at the highest professional level.”

“You are using authority that you do not have for bad reasons and I warn you not to interfere in areas that are not yours and not to interfere with my work,” Amsalem declared.

Amsalem was accused last month of securing his rumored girlfriend a cushy job at the Jerusalem Municipality, and has also reportedly been caught up in the major corruption scandal at the Histadrut.

‘Special qualifications’

Lawmakers also voted 46-40 to advance a bill proposed by Likud MK Nissim Vaturi that would permit associates of ministers to be appointed as heads of government companies without needing “special qualifications.”

The bill, approved in a preliminary reading, will now be sent to the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee for preparation for further readings.

Under the current system, the Senior Appointments Advisory Committee will only recommend the appointment of an individual associated with a minister to head a government firm if they have “special qualifications” — which are not required of other candidates.

In its explanatory notes, Vaturi’s bill states that it “is intended to correct an injustice of many years that harms the freedom of occupation and equality of a candidate who is politically active.”

Over the summer, the Attorney General’s Office expressed opposition to the bill, with Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara arguing in a letter to Justice Minister Yariv Levin that the current law protects against a candidate being appointed “due to his connections.”

The new bill, she wrote, “seriously harms the integrity of appointments to government companies, as well as appointments to various public corporations,” adding that it was part of a range of legislative steps that “politicize” the civil service.

In recent months, the Ministerial Committee for Legislation gave its support to a measure to appoint senior officials, such as the police commissioner, without consulting the Advisory Committee on Senior Civil Service Appointments — as well as a bill allowing an incoming government to fire senior security officials and public officers within its first 100 days in office.

Calling his proposal “a very important law for the sake of democracy,” Vaturi argued that the current system is discriminatory against members of parties that hold primaries.

Those who are members of parties like Likud, Labor and Meretz “deserve to receive a position like any other citizen in the State of Israel,” he said.