Figures show Haredim far more likely than other Jews to receive government subsidies

Channel 12 reports that Finance Ministry officials recently presented Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara with figures showing that existing government regulations substantially benefit ultra-Orthodox Israelis, who are far more likely to qualify for government subsidies than other Jewish citizens.

The figures were included in a document presented to various government offices as part of the attorney general’s demand to resume enforcement against ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers.

They showed that an ultra-Orthodox family has a 72% chance to qualify for reductions to their municipal property taxes, while other Jewish households only have a 17% chance of receiving such government subsidies.

Twenty-four percent of ultra-Orthodox homeowners receive improved mortgage terms, compared to just 2% of all other Jewish homeowners, the figures showed.

Twenty-one percent of Haredim receive subsidies off of their rent, compared to just 1% of other Jewish renters.

Twenty-eight percent of Haredim receive daycare subsidies, compared to 4% of the rest of the Jewish public.

Sixty-four percent of Haredim receive subsidies for afternoon childcare, compared to 9% of the rest of the Jewish public.

Ninety-five percent of Haredim are eligible for reductions to public transportation fees, compared to 23% of the rest of the Jewish public.

It is unclear why non-Jews were not included in the figures presented by Baharav-Miara’s office.

The network argues that the existing terms for government subsidies are so massively skewed in favor of ultra-Orthodox Israelis that barring Haredim from receiving those subsidies due to refusal to serve in the army should not be considered a sanction, but rather to even the playing field.