Government votes to collect Jewish National Fund revenues

The cabinet votes to advance legislation that would channel 80 percent of revenues from Jewish National Fund land sales to national infrastructure projects.

“Over the years the Jewish National Fund has done many important things on behalf of the Jewish People and the State of Israel. But today it is clearer than ever that the future of the Jewish People is strongly bound to the future of the State of Israel. It is here that the fate and future of the Jewish People will be decided. The needs of the State of Israel are many,” Netanyahu tells his ministers at the cabinet meeting.

“The JNF sells lands every year and receives billions of shekels in return. It is very important that this money be channeled to the needs of the State of Israel. These needs cannot wait. This is the nature of our meeting today and we make decisions,” he adds.

The move comes as the government is engaged in a battle with the JNF over some NIS 2 billion ($570,000) owed to the government that could threaten its tax exemption if not paid.

In January, State Comptroller Joseph Shapira released a report slamming the JNF and its operational branch, the Land Development Administration, as a “bloated organization” with little transparency that may have mishandled funds and acted out of conflicts of interest.