The national budget totals 295.4 billion shekels ($70.5 billion), of which roughly a fifth is designated for security.
According to a special agreement guaranteeing that the United Torah Judaism party would not vote against, 260 million shekels will be added to the budget for higher yeshivot - including some for those of the religious-Zionist sector - and another 30 million will be allocated for other UTJ interests.
In another special agreement, Yisrael Beiteinu received some 190 million shekels in budgetary allocations, including 22 million for the Netiv liaison office, which oversees matters concerning the former Soviet Union and which party leader Minister Avigdor Lieberman controls. The agreement also provides for 60 million shekels for the waiver of Broadcast Authority fees for the elderly, 12 million for the Jewish Agency's settlement division, and 10 million for the Fund for New Immigrant Scientists.
The religious-Zionist party - National Union-National Religious Party - is very disappointed with the results of the budget. Contrary to last year, when they received over 120 million shekels for religious high schools, the year-long National Service program, hesder yeshivot and more, this year the joint party received nothing.
There is talk, however, that the Finance Ministry will allocate some monies to religious-Zionist causes at a later date.
"It's a very bad situation," MK Nissan Slomiansky (NRP) told Arutz-7. "Not only has everything been cut, but we are also not getting the added monies that we received last year. For instance, the pre-military yeshiva academies received 21 million last year, plus another 9 million that we and others added; now, though, they are to receive only 15 million shekels, with no guarantee that we will have anything to add to them."
According to a special agreement guaranteeing that the United Torah Judaism party would not vote against, 260 million shekels will be added to the budget for higher yeshivot - including some for those of the religious-Zionist sector - and another 30 million will be allocated for other UTJ interests.
In another special agreement, Yisrael Beiteinu received some 190 million shekels in budgetary allocations, including 22 million for the Netiv liaison office, which oversees matters concerning the former Soviet Union and which party leader Minister Avigdor Lieberman controls. The agreement also provides for 60 million shekels for the waiver of Broadcast Authority fees for the elderly, 12 million for the Jewish Agency's settlement division, and 10 million for the Fund for New Immigrant Scientists.
The religious-Zionist party - National Union-National Religious Party - is very disappointed with the results of the budget. Contrary to last year, when they received over 120 million shekels for religious high schools, the year-long National Service program, hesder yeshivot and more, this year the joint party received nothing.
There is talk, however, that the Finance Ministry will allocate some monies to religious-Zionist causes at a later date.
"It's a very bad situation," MK Nissan Slomiansky (NRP) told Arutz-7. "Not only has everything been cut, but we are also not getting the added monies that we received last year. For instance, the pre-military yeshiva academies received 21 million last year, plus another 9 million that we and others added; now, though, they are to receive only 15 million shekels, with no guarantee that we will have anything to add to them."