It should be borne in mind, however, that the budget in its final version is the result of political and governmental struggles over the apportioning of the national resource pie. The extent and composition of Israel’s social expenditure reflect the outcome of a process in which many players take part: the government, its ministers, the Knesset, the media, public entities, and academia. The budget as the Knesset ultimately approves it is the “bottom line” of decisions and outcomes.
This paper appears as a chapter in the Center’s annual publication, Israel’s Social Services 2003, Yaakov Kop (editor).