Israeli Public Broadcasting Law, 5774-2014
חוק השידור הציבורי הישראלי, תשע"ד-2014
Published: 2014-08-11Consolidated Hebrew text as of 2018-07-26 · Last amended 2026-07-28✓ Amendment status checked against the Knesset legislation record on 2026-09-28
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Chapter XV: Commencement and Transitional Provisions
Commencement – Order (No. 2) 5775-2015§
92.
(a)This Law shall come into force, except for the sections listed in subsection (a1) and except for sections 2, 3 and 80, this Chapter, Chapter XVI, the repeal of section 5 of the Broadcasting Authority Law, 5725-1965, in section 123 of this Law, and section 126, on the 19th of Iyar 5777 (15 May 2017) (in this section – the commencement date); the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation shall commence its broadcasts.
(a1)The commencement of the sections listed below shall be on the transition date as its meaning in section 120:
(1)section 63(b)(2);
(2)section 66;
(3)section 72(b);
(4)section 131(2) and (3);
(5)section 132(2);
(6)section 135(7)(a)(2) and (b)(1) and (3);
(7)section 135(8)(b);
(8)section 143(1)(b) and (2)(b);
(9)section 145(1)(a)(2) and (3) and (d)(2);
(10)section 147(2)(a)(2) and (b)(2);
(11)section 147(4)(b) and (5);
(12)section 4 of the Schedule.
(a2)Section 80 shall come into force on the 28th of Elul 5776 (1 October 2016).
(b)The repeal of section 5 of the Broadcasting Authority Law, 5725-1965, in section 123 of this Law, shall come into force on the date of the dissolution of the legal personality of the Broadcasting Authority under section 115.
(b1)Section 126 shall come into force on the 3rd of Tevet 5777 (1 January 2017).
(b2)Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) –
(1)(Repealed);
(2)the Ministers, after consulting the Council, may, by Order, advance the commencement date to a date no earlier than the 3rd of Tevet 5777 (1 January 2017), provided that the Order is published at least 35 days before the commencement date specified therein.
(b3)If the Ministers advanced the commencement date under the provisions of subsection (b2), the following provisions shall apply:
(1)the Ministers shall submit a report thereon to the Economics Committee;
(2)section 80(a) shall be read as if in the definition "the total amount", instead of paragraphs (1) and (2), the following were substituted:
"(1) in 2017 – NIS 555 million, plus an amount of NIS 17.5 million for each additional month in which the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation broadcast in 2017 due to the advancement of the commencement date as stated in section 92(b2);
(2)in 2018 – NIS 626.6 million, plus the amount obtained from the product of the following two:
(a)the amount of the annual expenditure for the purchase of purchased local productions intended for broadcasting on the children's and youth channel as stated in section 4 of the Schedule, divided by 12;
(b)the number of surplus months; in this sub-paragraph, "the number of surplus months" – the difference between the number of months in which the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation broadcast in 2018 on three television channels due to the advancement of the commencement date as stated in section 92(b2) and the number of months it would have broadcast had the commencement date not been advanced as aforesaid.".
(c)(Repealed).
(d)Within one year from the commencement date –
(1)the Council shall determine initial rules under sections 52(b) and 53;
(2)it shall appoint public representatives under section 64(c);
(3)the Council shall approve tariffs under section 67(b) and (c).
Temporary provision – registered office of the Corporation§
92a.
(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 5, during the periods set out below the following provisions shall apply:
(1)from the 3rd of Tevet 5777 (1 January 2017) until the 17th of Sivan 5778 (31 May 2018), the meetings of the management of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation and the Council shall be held in Jerusalem, and the Corporation shall broadcast the news editions of Kol Israel from Jerusalem;
(2)from the 7th of Tammuz 5777 (1 July 2017) until the 17th of Sivan 5778 (31 May 2018), the registered office of at least half of the employees of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation shall be in Jerusalem.
(b)The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation shall report to the Economics Committee once every two months, commencing in January 2017 until the 17th of Sivan 5778 (31 May 2018), on the implementation of the provisions of subsection (a).
Budget delay due to non-compliance with the provisions of section 92a§
92b.
(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 80, if the Minister of Finance has ascertained that the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation is not complying with the provisions of section 92a at the dates specified therein, he may direct the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety not to transfer the budget funds in accordance with that section (in this section – budget delay), in the amounts detailed in subsection (b), all as set out below:
(1)the Minister of Finance shall notify the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation of his intention to direct a budget delay, and the Corporation shall be entitled to present its arguments before the Minister of Finance in this regard;
(2)if the Minister of Finance has decided, after hearing the arguments of the Corporation as stated in paragraph (1), to direct a budget delay, he shall direct that this be done; the direction of the Minister of Finance requires the approval of the Economics Committee;
(3)a final decision on a budget delay shall be made within 25 working days from the date of the Minister's notice to the Corporation of his intention to direct a budget delay.
(b)The budget that may be delayed under subsection (a) in respect of the first month in which the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation did not comply with the provisions of section 92a shall be in the amount of NIS 2 million; in respect of each additional month in which the Corporation does not comply with the said provisions, an amount of NIS 2 million shall be added to the amount delayed in the preceding month, up to a maximum of NIS 10 million per month.
(c)If the Corporation has complied with the provisions of section 92a, the Minister of Finance shall direct the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety to transfer to the Corporation the delayed budget, within 14 days.
(d)If a budget was delayed under the provisions of this section and the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation did not comply with the provisions of section 92a by the end of the year in which the budget was delayed, the Minister of Finance may decide that the budget delayed for the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation shall not be transferred.
Establishment budget§
93.
For the purpose of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation's preparations to conduct its broadcasts commencing on the commencement date, the State shall make available to it an adequate budget to be used by it to enter into the transactions required for that purpose, including transactions for the acquisition of services, equipment and real property rights, all in accordance with an agreement between the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation and the State, through the Accountant General at the Ministry of Finance.
Transitional provisions – budget for the establishment of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation§
93a.
During the period from the 28th of Elul 5776 (1 October 2016) until the 3rd of Tevet 5777 (1 January 2017), section 80 shall be read with the following modifications:
(1)in subsection (a), the definition "the additional amount" – shall not be read, and instead of the definition "the total amount" the following shall be read:
""the total amount" – NIS 67.5 million;";
(2)in subsection (b), the words "the additional amount" – shall not be read;
(3)in subsection (c), the words "from which shall be deducted the additional amount collected during the preceding month (in this section – the transferred amount)" – shall not be read;
(4)subsection (d) – shall not be read.
Appointment of the first Search Committee of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation§
94.
Proceedings for the appointment of the first Search Committee that commenced before the publication date shall be deemed to have been done under the provisions of this Law, provided they were carried out in accordance with the provisions of this Law; the provisions of section 29(e) regarding the publication of a public notice shall not apply to the appointment of the first Search Committee.
Temporary Director General and first Deputy Director General for Financial Affairs§
95.
(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 38(a) to (c), a temporary Director General shall be appointed for the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation by the Search Committee, to which, in addition to its members, two further public representatives as detailed below shall serve, to be appointed by the Chairperson of the Committee:
(1)a public representative, a member of the academic staff of a recognised institution as its meaning in the Council for Higher Education Law, 5718-1958, with expertise in the field of communications;
(2)an additional public representative who meets the requirement set out in section 29(b)(3);
the provisions of sections 29(d) and (f) and 30 shall apply to the public representatives under this subsection and to their appointment, and their appointment shall be published on the website of the Ministry of Communications.
(b)The decision of the Search Committee to appoint the temporary Director General shall be adopted by a majority of its members, provided that one of them is from among the additional public representatives appointed under subsection (a).
(c)The following provisions of section 38 shall apply to the temporary Director General: subsection (a), regarding the conditions of eligibility, and subsection (d).
(d)The term of office of the temporary Director General shall be until the expiry of two years from the commencement date; nothing in the foregoing shall prevent his appointment to the position of Director General, under the provisions of section 38.
(e)Until the commencement date, the temporary Director General shall engage in establishing the infrastructure required for the commencement of the operations of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, and in any other action required for the purpose of the Corporation's preparations to conduct broadcasts on the commencement date; commencing on the commencement date and until the expiry of his term of office, the temporary Director General shall fulfil all the functions imposed on the Director General under this Law and all the provisions of the Law applicable to the Director General shall apply to him.
(f)(Repealed).
(g)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 52, the temporary Director General may take on, without a tender, up to twenty employees at the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, for positions required for the purpose of establishing the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, excluding positions of office holders, including the head of the news division.
(h)The employees referred to in subsection (g) shall be employed at the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation for a period not exceeding two years from the date of commencement of their employment, provided that nothing in the foregoing shall prevent their being taken on for employment at the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, under the provisions of section 52.
(h1)
(1)Without derogating from the provisions of subsections (g) and (h), and notwithstanding the provisions of section 52, the temporary Director General may take on for employment, before the commencement date, up to 600 employees required for the purpose of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation's preparations to conduct broadcasts on the commencement date, even if a personnel ceiling limit has not yet been determined; the taking on of employees under this paragraph shall be done by a fair and transparent process in accordance with rules to be determined by the temporary Director General in consultation with the Civil Service Commissioner; such rules shall be published on the website of the Corporation or of the Ministry of Communications;
(2)notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1), after the appointment of the first head of the news division, the taking on of employees to positions of the types listed in section 52(b)(2) shall be done by the head of the news division with the approval of the temporary Director General, and in accordance with rules to be determined by the temporary Director General in consultation with the Civil Service Commissioner, and published as stated in paragraph (1);
(3)once the Council has been appointed, the continued taking on of employees under this subsection and not in accordance with the provisions of section 52 requires its approval; the Council may make its approval conditional upon terms it shall determine;
(4)nothing in the provisions of this subsection shall derogate from the provisions of section 96, including the provisions established therein regarding the exemption from the obligation of a tender in taking on employees of the Broadcasting Authority or employees of Educational Television to the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation.
(i)Notwithstanding the provisions of section 52(b)(1), the first Deputy Director General for Financial Affairs of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation (hereinafter – the first CFO) shall be selected by a candidate search committee procedure whose members are the temporary Director General and two members of the Search Committee, in the composition under subsection (a), to be chosen by the Chairperson of the Search Committee; the term of office of the first CFO shall be two years from the date of his appointment; nothing in the foregoing shall prevent his being taken on for employment at the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation at the end of the said period, in accordance with the provisions of section 52(b)(1).
(j)Subject to the provisions of subsection (e), the temporary Director General and the first CFO shall be entitled to enter into transactions, jointly, on behalf of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation.
Appointment of the First Council§
95a.
Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9, the Minister may appoint a first Council comprising ten members, provided that the Minister shall act to complete the composition of the Council to 12 members as soon as possible; if the Minister has appointed a first Council as aforesaid, its existence, powers and the validity of its actions shall not be prejudiced by reason of its composition as aforesaid.
Absorption of Employees of the Broadcasting Authority and the Educational Television into the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation§
96.
(a)The Interim Director General shall offer employees of the Broadcasting Authority positions in the Corporation, at a scope of 510 full positions or a number of employees equal to 51 percent of the peak manpower of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, in accordance with the first approval of the Council under section 11(5), whichever is higher, to be received as employees of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, and the tender obligation shall not apply to the receipt of employees under this subsection.
(b)At the end of six months from the commencement date, the Council shall re-approve the peak manpower under section 11(5); if the peak manpower increased relative to the previous peak manpower determined under subsection (a), the Interim Director General shall, within thirty days of the new approval as aforesaid, offer an additional number of employees of the Broadcasting Authority to be received as employees of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, such that, in total, a number of Broadcasting Authority employees shall be offered positions at a scope of 450 full positions or a number of employees equal to 51 percent of the new peak manpower that was determined, whichever is higher, and the tender obligation shall not apply to the receipt of employees under this subsection.
(c)Without derogating from the provisions of subsections (a) and (b), until two years and three months from the commencement date, the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation may receive additional employees of the Broadcasting Authority and of the Educational Television; furthermore, the Interim Director General shall offer employees of the Educational Television positions in the Corporation, at a scope of 40 full positions, and for this purpose the provisions of subsections (d) and (f) shall apply, with the necessary modifications and with the following modification: in subsection (d), wherever appearing, instead of "the commencement date" read "the transition date as defined in section 120"; to the sum specified in paragraph (3) of the definition of "the total amount" in section 80(a) shall be added a sum of NIS 12 million; the tender obligation shall not apply to the receipt of employees under this subsection; nothing in the foregoing shall impose an obligation to receive a Broadcasting Authority employee or an Educational Television employee into the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation.
(d)A Broadcasting Authority employee to whom the Interim Director General has offered a position to be received into employment in the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation under the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) shall respond to the offer within 21 days of the date of its receipt; if the employee has not responded to the offer within the said period, the employee shall be deemed to have refused the offer; the Interim Director General's offer as referred to in subsection (a) shall be made before the commencement date, so as to enable the absorption of employees in the number or proportion referred to in that subsection by the commencement date.
(e)Subsections (a) to (d) shall apply to an employee of the Broadcasting Authority or an employee of the Educational Television, as the case may be, who was employed at the Broadcasting Authority or the Educational Television for at least two consecutive years on the eve of the publication date; however, it shall be possible to receive a Broadcasting Authority employee or an Educational Television employee under the provisions of subsection (c), in exceptional cases and with the approval of the Council, even if the employee was not employed for the said period.
(f)For the purposes of this section, a Broadcasting Authority employee who was received as an employee of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation under section 95(h1) shall be deemed as one to whom an offer was made, under the provisions of subsections (a) or (b), to be received as an employee of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation.
(g)For the purposes of this section, a person who was an employee of the Broadcasting Authority or an employee of the Educational Television on the eve of the publication date and whose employment at the Broadcasting Authority or the Educational Television, as the case may be, ended after the publication date shall also be deemed to be an employee of the Broadcasting Authority or an employee of the Educational Television.
(h)In an offer made to Broadcasting Authority employees to be received into employment in the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, given after the commencement date under subsection (b), the Interim Director General of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation shall give priority to a veteran Broadcasting Authority employee, as defined in section 98k, who meets the position requirements, as determined by the Interim Director General and subject to professional considerations.
First Office Holders§
97.
(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 52(b)(1) and 47(b), a special search committee for the selection of office holders shall select and appoint the first office holders of the Corporation (in this section – the Special Search Committee), including the head of the news division.
(b)The members of the Special Search Committee shall be the Interim Director General, who shall be the chairperson, the chairperson of the Search Committee and an additional office holder determined by the Interim Director General; pending the selection of an additional office holder as aforesaid, the first Chief Financial Officer shall be a member of the Special Search Committee.
(c)Office holders appointed under subsection (a) shall be employed in the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation for a period not exceeding two years from the date of commencement of their work; however, nothing in the foregoing shall prevent their receipt into employment in the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation under the provisions of section 52.
(d)The provisions of this section shall apply until the appointment of the Council; however, if a search process has commenced under this section, the Special Search Committee shall complete the search process as referred to in this section, and if the office holder has not yet been appointed, the appointment shall require the approval of the Council.
Extension of Service Period§
98.
(a)For the purpose of determining the rights of a pensioner of the Broadcasting Authority who retired on the commencement date, or of a pensioner of the Educational Television who retired by a date to be determined by the Minister of Finance, to whom the provisions of the State Service (Pensions) Law [Consolidated Version], 5730-1970 apply (in this section – the Pensions Law), the service period shall be calculated as a period longer than it actually was, such that the rate of the pensioner's pension shall increase by a rate of ten percentage points or by the rate in percentage points by which the pension rate would have increased had the pensioner served until the end of the month in which the pensioner would have reached the mandatory retirement age under the Retirement Age Law, 5764-2004, whichever is lower, provided that the pension rate shall not exceed 70 percent of the employee's determining salary, calculated as though the employee had worked in a full position throughout the entire service period, and all subject to the conditions set for the extension of the service period under section 100 of the Pensions Law, and subject to the following conditions:
(1)in the month in which the pensioner retired, the pensioner had reached the age of 50 but had not yet reached the age of 64 years and 11 months;
(2)with regard to a person to whom a grant was paid under section 22(a) of the Pensions Law, calculated in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (2) of that section, and within the framework of the pension to which the pensioner is entitled at the time of dismissal for the purposes of that paragraph, the extension of the service period to which the pensioner is entitled under this section was not taken into account – the employee shall have refunded to the State Treasury the difference between the amount of the grant paid and the amount of the grant due when the extension of the service period as aforesaid is taken into account;
(3)additional conditions to be determined by the Minister of Finance by Order.
(b)Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a), the Minister of Finance may determine by Order that the extensions of the service period under this section shall also apply to pensioners who retired before the commencement date or at an age other than that referred to in subsection (a)(1), subject to conditions to be determined.
Transitional Provisions regarding the Absorption of Broadcasting Authority Employees into the State Service§
98a.
(a)The Civil Service Commissioner shall offer veteran employees of the Broadcasting Authority appointment as State employees to positions designated for this purpose, in accordance with the professional needs of the State; the receipt of employees under this section shall take place during the period from the commencement date until the end of four months from that date, and shall be exempt from a tender under the State Service (Appointments) Law, 5719-1959, subject to conditions to be determined by the Civil Service Commissioner within one month of the commencement date.
(b)A Broadcasting Authority employee who was not received as an employee of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation within three months of the commencement date shall be entitled to compete, during the period until the end of one year and three months from the commencement date, in internal tenders or inter-ministerial tenders published by the Civil Service Commission.
(c)The Civil Service Commissioner shall report in writing to the Economics Committee of the Knesset, at the end of three months and at the end of six months from the commencement date, on the implementation of this section.
(d)In this section –
"veteran Broadcasting Authority employee" – a Broadcasting Authority employee as referred to in section 96(e) and (g), who on the commencement date has reached the age of 40 and who is not entitled, upon retirement from the Broadcasting Authority, to a pension under the State Service (Pensions) Law [Consolidated Version], 5730-1970, or to the payment of a bridging pension;
"bridging pension" – an entitlement to monthly payment until the employee reaches the mandatory retirement age under the Retirement Age Law, 5764-2004, or until the occurrence of an entitling event as its meaning in the documents of agreed principles concerning the Broadcasting Authority of the 2nd of Av 5774 (29 July 2014), to which the General Federation of Labour in Israel or the Jerusalem and Tel Aviv Journalists Association is a party, as the case may be.
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