High Court Strikes Down Jerusalem Procedure for Tender-Free Funding

Israel's Supreme Court rejected the Jerusalem municipality's appeal, ruling that a procedure allowing public funds to be transferred without a tender is unlawful.

The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by the Jerusalem municipality, ruling that a procedure funding private events and initiatives without a public tender is unlawful and lacks legal standing. This was reported by Haaretz and Kikar HaShabbat. The ruling upholds the cancellation of the mechanism, which the municipality had used for some 12 years.

Under the framework, designated as "joint ventures and activities," dozens and potentially hundreds of millions of shekels were transferred to projects, events, and various entities, including Ultra-Orthodox organizations and political events. According to the reports, the ruling is also expected to impact other local authorities operating under similar mechanisms.