Bennett's B'Yachad files bill offering reservists NIS 4,000 a month for childcare

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett's party, B'Yachad, has submitted legislation to give a package of financial benefits to active military reservists and discharged soldiers, The Times of Israel reported. The proposal includes a monthly childcare payment of NIS 4,000 (about $1,262) for each active reservist, along with discounts on household bills, public transport and state fees.

Bennett presented the measure, which his party calls the servers bill, as the first piece of legislation it filed once the new Knesset was sworn in. Writing on X, he said the money for those who serve would come from revised eligibility rules and from stopping funds now paid to households that take part in neither military service nor employment. The Times of Israel described that wording as a reference to Haredi yeshiva students.

What the bill would offer

According to the account in The Times of Israel and Bennett's own post, the benefits for active reservists would include:

• NIS 4,000 a month from the state toward a daycare centre or home-based childcare
• A 50% discount on electricity, water and municipal property tax, known in Israel as arnona
• A 50% discount on public transportation and on government fees
• Discounts on the purchase of a first home

The Times of Israel reported that the bill would also expand tuition support for soldiers after their discharge: full tuition coverage for those who served in combat roles, and half-price tuition for other discharged soldiers.

Bennett's framing

In his post, Bennett said the aim was to "flip the pyramid" and to place those who serve ahead of those who evade service. In a statement carried by the Israeli political commentator Amit Segal on his Telegram channel, Bennett said his party's principles had guided it from the outset and that the bill was meant to put soldiers and reservists at the top of the national order of priorities. He described the benefits as a message to those serving in regular and reserve duty, and to their families, that his party was committed to them.

Segal presented the move as a pointed signal from Bennett both to his prospective partners and to the Haredi parties. In a follow-up post, Segal wrote that the legislation does more than add benefits for those who serve: in his reading, it takes apart, one by one, the channels through which Haredi families have received subsidies or preferential treatment. He added that this comes as the Haredi parties are pushing in the opposite direction in negotiations. That characterisation is Segal's analysis rather than a description of the bill's text.

A competing bill from United Torah Judaism

On the same day, United Torah Judaism (UTJ), a party representing ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, voters, put forward legislation pointing the other way, The Times of Israel reported. A bill from UTJ lawmaker Meir Porush would make the draft exemptions of yeshiva students permanent and shield them from arrest for evading military service.

The Times of Israel noted that B'Yachad and UTJ have been reported to be possible partners in talks on forming a coalition, and said the two bills show how far apart their priorities are.

Background for readers outside Israel

Military service is compulsory for most Jewish Israelis, and many continue to serve in the reserves for years after their initial service. Full-time students at yeshivas, religious seminaries focused on Torah study, have long been able to defer or avoid conscription. The question of whether, and how, Haredi men should be drafted is one of the most divisive issues in Israeli politics, and it often surfaces during coalition negotiations, when Haredi parties seek guarantees on exemptions and on state funding for their communities.

Bennett, who previously served as prime minister, now leads B'Yachad. A bill submitted in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, is only the first step: private members' legislation must pass several readings and votes before becoming law, and many such bills never advance.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports give an estimate of what the benefits would cost or how much would be saved by changing eligibility rules, and no response from UTJ or other Haredi parties to the B'Yachad bill has been reported. The reports also do not say whether the bill has the backing of any other party or when it might come up for a vote.