Local councils (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

plural The plural (sometimes abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the default quantity represented by that noun. This de ...

: ''Mo'atzot Mekomiot'' / singular: ''Mo'atza Mekomit,''

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

: مجالس محليّة ''Majalis Mahaleea /'' singular: مجلس محلّي ''Majlis Mahalee'') are one of the three types of

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

found in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, the other two being

cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and regional councils. There are 124 local councils in Israel. Local councils should not be confused with local committees, which are lower-level administrative entities.

History

Local council status is determined by passing a minimum threshold, enough to justify operations as independent municipal units, although not large enough to be declared a city. In general this applies to all settlements of over 2,000 people. The Israeli Interior Minister has the authority of deciding whether a locality is fit to become a municipal council (a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

). The minister is then expected to listen to the wishes of the residents of the locality in question, who may wish the locality to remain a local council even after achieving the requirements for a city (e.g.,

Ramat HaSharon Ramat HaSharon ( he, רָמַת הַשָּׁרוֹן, ''lit.'' '' Sharon Heights'', ar, رمات هشارون) is a city located on Israel's central coastal strip in the south of the Sharon region, bordering Tel Aviv to the south, Hod HaSharon t ...

, which did not become a city until 2002 due to its residents wanting to preserve its image as a small town), or a part of a regional council despite having achieved the criteria for a local one. Local councils also have an important role in town planning. The Union of Local Authorities in Israel (ULAI) is the umbrella organization of local councils in Israel. The union represents the local councils vis a vis the national government. ULAI was established in 1938, under the British Mandate, as the League of Local Councils.Union of Local Authorities in Israel

References

External links

Local Government in Israel
The Knesset Lexicon of Terms. 2009 * Local Council Ordinance {{Articles on third-level administrative divisions of countries Subdivisions of Israel Local Councils

History

See also

References

External links