Despite bitter opposition and harsh criticism, the Knesset Finance Committee yesterday approved the drought tax, albeit with minor changes to the original proposal. At the start of the vote, Finance Committee chairman MK Moshe Gafni (United Torah Judaism) said, "This is a very harsh law, but the alternative was either to tax the people, which the committee was able to greatly alleviate, or to turn off the taps."
The Finance Committee voted on the drought tax after the Knesset plenum passed it in the first reading, and a Finance Committee subcommittee worked on it further. The drought tax will now go the Knesset plenum for its second and third readings.
The drought tax will come into effect in three stages. From July 15, when the Knesset is due to pass the measure, through October 31, the water consumption quota for a family of up to four persons will be 16 cubic meters per month, and each additional person will get 4.2 cubic meters of water per month. Under the original proposal, the quota per person was three cubic meters of water per month.
On November 1, the quota for a family of four will rise to 18 cubic meters of water per month, and the quota for each additional person will be five cubic meters per month. The rationale is that the critical period for the Water Authority is the current summer, during which the country is expected to suffer a water shortage. The Water Authority hopes that, with the start of the rainy season in winter, the water situation will improve, so it is willing to ease the water quota.
The third stage of the drought tax will come into effect in January 2010, when the quota basis will change to a family of two from a family of four, and it will be set at 12 cubic meters of water per month. A family of three will be eligible for 15 cubic meters of water a month, and the quota will increase by five cubic meters a month for each additional person.
The Finance Committee passed the drought tax by a large majority, overcoming the opposition of MK Ronit Tirosh (Kadima) and MK Uri Ariel (National Union).
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 9, 2009
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