Why are so many government bodies still located outside of Jerusalem?
Today, five years after the due date, many such bodies remain outside of the capital. Moreover, the Strategic Affairs Ministry just moved to Tel Aviv a few days ago.
By PEGGY CIDORTHE OFFICIAL reason these government offices haven't moved to the capital? Not enough facilities to house them(photo credit: HADAS PARUSH/FLASH90)
In 1980, the government approved a law mandating that all of its components must operate in Jerusalem. The policy was set to strengthen the capital financially. It took some 20 more years until the government declared 2015 to be the deadline for the transfer of all these entities.When the law was passed, many government bodies were in Tel Aviv. Today, five years after the due date, many such bodies remain outside of the capital. Moreover, the Strategic Affairs Ministry just moved to Tel Aviv a few days ago. Still located in and around Tel Aviv: the National Authority for the Measurement and Evaluation in Education; the Civil Service Unit of the Social Affairs Ministry; various Justice Ministry units; the Economy Ministry; the Health Ministry; the Israel Land Authority; the Civil Service Commission and more. There are no signs whatsoever that they plan to move into the capital anytime soon.The usual reason for non-compliance with the law is that there are not enough facilities in Jerusalem to house these ministries. Mayor Moshe Lion, while campaigning for the position in October 2018, agreed, declaring one of his first tasks as mayor to construct enough offices venues in the city to accommodate all needs. In the last year and a half, numerous square meters of office space have been built in the city and additional projects are continuously approved by the municipality, yet no government unit or ministry has yet moved in. Some government units have even expressed opposition to the move to the capital, even though their activities would be more efficient if they were located closer to government and Knesset offices.According to Nadan Feldman of the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research, Jerusalem’s available space already exceeded 195,000 square meters by the end of 2018, far surpassing the 50,000 square meters required by the governmental units legally required to move here, undermining their excuse for not doing so.The requirement to move to the capital has far-reaching economic ramifications. According to Feldman’s research, the expected income will be tremendous due to 1) municipal property taxes from units that will move to the city, and 2) the relocation of thousands of workers filling thousands of new jobs in the government sector. Had these units moved to Jerusalem by 2015, it would have generated NIS 382.1 million for the year 2018 – and that figure keeps rising. The loss for the city’s economy is substantial.JIPR CEO Lior Schillat says, “I understand that a large ministry, like Defense, requires something unique, but what about small bodies like the Strategic Affairs Ministry, the Digital Israel unit, or the Environment Ministry? They do not need extraordinary campuses. Why aren’t they moving to the capital? Jerusalem needs a strong population and that would help consolidate it.“It would be good for all these bodies – and it would also be good for the government to implement its own decisions.”The mayor responded to our request for comment: “Now that the national government has finally been formed, the municipality is taking significant steps to further promote the issue. The major problem that prevented progress on this front was the lack of appropriate office area available. Now, with the extensive building projects in the city nearing completion, government bodies as well as additional enterprises will be able to move into Jerusalem.”
