The government today (Sunday) approved the proposal of the Minister of Jerusalem Affairs, Zeev Elkin, to punish government ministries that continue to operate from Tel Aviv, even though they have an active compound in Jerusalem.
Minister Elkin said after the proposal was approved: "Four years of struggle and three governments that were replaced, but in the end we succeeded. "National government units for Jerusalem. It's time to make statements a reality."
Under the proposal, financial sanctions would be imposed on the ministries in question.
They will be charged double property tax and rent for the facilities in Jerusalem.
The state will stop bearing the costs of these payments and they will be cut from the budgets of the ministries themselves.
Minister Elkin, Photo: Yonatan Zindel / Flash 90
In addition to all this, the renovation and maintenance budgets will be stopped and a minister who does not initiate the move to Jerusalem will not be able to correct deficiencies in his office.
The Ministry of Defense and its trust units, as well as trust units in the Prime Minister's Office that have received individual approval from the Prime Minister - will be exempt from the sanctions, while the other ministries (listed in the table below) will be required to immigrate to Jerusalem.
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List of offices that will be required to move to Jerusalem,
The background to the decision that Elkin is initiating is the non-implementation of a 2018 government decision to move all offices to the capital.
Elkin, who also served as Minister of Jerusalem Affairs at the time, understood that the move would not be promoted without the imposition of sanctions - and therefore the decision will be discussed again at the cabinet meeting.