What do you know about the state budget? The truth is, you probably know quite a bit about him.
In recent years, we are exposed more and more to data on the state budget, which appear in the press every morning
the economy and the various media. This exposure makes us all realize that there is a lot of money in our budget, and
To get to know better its division between government ministries. We also know better today about the movement of money
ours within the state budget, and on the transition of budget parts between different sections throughout the year.
Bottom line – we know better how our money is distributed.
But what we don’t know is how our budget is used?
Because even after the budget passes and reaches the various sections, work is still required on the part of the government ministries to realize this money in practice, that is, to actually spend it for the benefit of the various sections for which it was allocated.
We often tend to think that the money allocated in the state budget is indeed fully realized, but this assumption is very far from being true and in fact, most of the budget items are not used according to their original planning. Many parts of the budget sections are underutilized, meaning that the money was not fully spent for the purpose of the section, or even without utilization at all(!). On the other hand, there are other sections where the money exceeds and goes out much more than originally planned.
The examination of the utilization of the actual budget allows us to see beyond the allocation of the budget and to see in a real way what our money was spent on and what it was not, which items were fully implemented, and which items remained with the money and actually returned to the state coffers.
What is interesting is that the data on the utilization of the budget is gathered every year in the Accountant General’s Department at the Treasury. This data is available to the public, but very difficult to read, and is concentrated in dozens of Excel tables that no one really looks at.
So what we have done on this website is to gather all the budget utilization data from the last twenty years, and make it accessible in a readable and friendly way, which allows you to understand exactly what was actually done with the budget.
The centralized data is available to everyone, and makes it possible to find and keep up to date on everything of interest. At the same time, these data are important for the research work on the government in Israel, in order to understand where the difficulties of the government ministries are in implementing their budget, and what can be done to solve them.
We invite you to use this site, distribute and share with friends.
Officials
Avital completed her Bachelor's degree in Political Science, Psychology, and Philosophy at Tel Aviv University.
Before joining us, she worked at the Ministry of Justice in the Land Registry and simultaneously specialized in the Israeli Knesset.
Hadar joins us after holding several roles in civil society organizations, local authorities, and significant permanent service as a project manager. He leads the digital transformation process for central projects, thus creating a robust infrastructure that enhances the organization's impact. With a deep understanding of the nonprofit world and extensive experience in project management and organizational optimization.
Hadar believes that data utilization is the only way to make effective decisions and to succeed in creating a better reality, there is a need to increase collaboration among sectors (business, public, social).
Hani Schneider is a project manager at the Center for Empowering Citizens.
She holds a Bachelor's degree in Sociology and Political Science from Tel Aviv-Yafo Academic College and a Master's degree in Communication and New Media Studies from the Interdisciplinary Center.
Ido comes to us directly from the office of the Minister for Social Equality, Mirav Cohen, where he served as a professional advisor in recent years. Among other things, he led the establishment of the Public Council for the Affairs of Elderly Citizens, worked on formulating a service charter for the financial system for the elderly, and advocated for the rights of Holocaust survivors and more.
In his previous roles, Ido served as a parliamentary advisor to several members of the Knesset, promoting legislation and parliamentary activity on various issues. Additionally, he worked in the Scouts movement as a factory coordinator in charge of the coast and the Mishmar HaShiv'im center, Yehud.
Ido holds a Bachelor's degree with honors in Sustainability and Government from the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, and a Master's degree in Business Administration from Bar Ilan University.
Ido believes strongly in the importance of the direct relationship between citizens and government, and in public policy that listens to the public, which is exactly what he aims to do at the Center for Empowering Citizens.
Michal holds a Bachelor's degree in International Relations and Communication and a Master's degree in Public Policy, both with honors from the Hebrew University. Michal is a graduate of the third cohort of the "Tzo'arim for Public Service" program, training future public managers. She served as a policy promotion manager in the national cyber array and as a senior manager for policy and projects in the Ombudsman for Children and Youth's Out-of-Home Care Division at the Ministry of Welfare. With deep familiarity with the governmental system, extensive project management experience, strategy formulation, policy leadership, implementation, international organization work, group facilitation, and more.
She believes in collaboration and dialogue as key to addressing any challenge, including within the framework of government-citizen relations. Michal is the partner of Bar and the mother of Goni and Nadav. Originally from the Galilee, she now resides in Tel Aviv.
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