Knesset panel advances bill allowing government to control budget of Kan public broadcaster

The Knesset Finance Committee votes to advance legislation giving the government the power to determine the budget of the Kan public broadcaster for its first reading in the Knesset, despite opposition from the Knesset legal department, the Economics Affairs Committee’s legal advisers, and the deputy attorney general, who all say that the legislation does not meet constitutional standards.

The legislation would remove the broadcaster’s guaranteed funding, which contains strict provisions intended to preserve barriers between the broadcaster and political authorities, and instead allow ministers to set and potentially cut the budget of the station, which regularly features reporting critical of those in power.

The move marks a major victory for Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, who has been engaged in a two-year legislative effort to dismantle the public broadcaster.

Opponents of the legislation, including opposition lawmakers, journalists’ organizations and Kan itself, warn that making the broadcaster dependent on annual government funding would undermine press freedom by discouraging critical reporting.

Supporters of the bill, including Karhi, argue that as a taxpayer-funded public broadcaster, Kan should be subject to the same budgetary oversight as other state bodies.

Finance Committee chair and Likud MK Hanoch Milwidsky says he is open to adding a provision during the legislative process to delay the law’s implementation until after the next national elections, currently slated for October.