Ezrachi

Freedom of information needs to work for the citizen
How is the Freedom of Information Act actually supposed to work?

Very simply.

A citizen wants to know what the municipality is spending their money on. They submit a request. The municipality receives it, reviews it, and responds within the timeframe set by law.

And from there everything should be transparent: what request was submitted, when it was submitted, where it was forwarded, and what response was received.

It cannot be that an ordinary person has to search the municipal website alone for dozens of protocols, call five departments, and try to figure out who is even supposed to answer them.

Our partners from the "Ashdod is Us" group have started doing precisely this work. They submitted a detailed request to the Ashdod Municipality under the Freedom of Information Act regarding the activities of the Aliyah and Absorption Department: budgets, expenses, employees, engagements, plans, outcomes, absorption apartments for new immigrants, committee meetings, and the implementation of its decisions.

We planned to make such requests within the framework of "Civil Compass" as well.

Why?

Because we know that city residents are already asking municipalities questions. But a lot of people simply do not know where to turn, how to submit a request correctly, and what to do when there is no response.

I had such a case myself.

I went to the Netanya Municipality and requested protocols on how the city handles noise (after the municipality failed to resolve a complaint by a Netanya resident about ongoing noise from a cafe in her building). We were politely, but without blinking an eye, sent to submit a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

Formally — everything is correct.

But there is one small problem: an ordinary person has a job.

We need to work, pay taxes, and property tax (Arnona), from which the mayor's salary and the salaries of municipal employees are also funded. And I do not have time to become an expert in municipal protocols, search for documents on ten different pages of the website, and figure out which department is supposed to provide what.

The system should be built for the citizen, not the citizen for the system.

Therefore, on the "Civil Compass" platform, we want to organize this process in the simplest way possible.

Requests must be public.
Responses must be public.
The inquiry history must be preserved.
And the citizen needs to understand what happened to their question after they sent it.

Now let's see how this mechanism will work with the Ashdod Municipality.

Of course, we would be glad to see such openness on the Netanya Municipality website as well.

However, unfortunately, lately we have not been receiving responses to our inquiries to the Netanya Municipality.

But we are stubborn people.

We want to live in a beautiful Netanya. A beautiful Ashdod. A beautiful Jerusalem.

And we want to understand where the money we pay in property tax goes.

It may be that when residents better understand how their city works and where their money goes, Netanya will drop from third place among cities people are leaving Israel from.

Below we are publishing the full request that our partners from the "Ashdod is Us" group submitted to the Ashdod Municipality on August 30, 2026.

If you have already submitted requests under the Freedom of Information Act to the Netanya Municipality and received responses to them — send them to us.

We will publish the documents on our website so that other residents can use them.

As of now, unfortunately, such organized information does not exist on the Netanya Municipality website.

Sincerely,
Dr. Gutnik
"Civil Compass"
www.amechad.info

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The Request from 30.08.2026

Below is an exact copy of the original request, unedited:

To:
Adv. David Dabes
Freedom of Information Officer
Ashdod Municipality

Subject: Request under the Freedom of Information Act – Activities of the Aliyah and Absorption Department in the Ashdod Municipality in the years 2024–2026

Dear Sir/Madam,

The "Ashdod is Us" forum, which deals with municipal issues, public transparency, and the examination of local authority activities, requests to receive information and documents concerning the activities of the Aliyah and Absorption Department in the Ashdod Municipality, its budget, engagements, plans, and the results of its activities in the years 2024–2026.

The request is submitted as part of a public review of the manner in which public funds are used and the services provided to immigrants residing in Ashdod.
The request relates to information and documents in the possession of the municipality and its systems, and does not entail a demand to create new information or perform special processing for the purpose of the response.

1. Budget and Actual Execution

I request to receive a full breakdown of the budget execution of the Aliyah and Absorption Department for the years 2024 and 2025, as well as the budget execution for the year 2026 up to the date of providing the response.

Regarding each budget item, I request to receive, to the extent the information exists:
The original budget;
The updated budget;
The actual execution amount;
The unused balance; and
An explanation recorded in the municipal systems regarding any change, freeze, or non-execution of the item.

To the extent that an accounting ledger of the Aliyah and Absorption Department items exists, I request to receive it in a digital format, including the transaction date, amount, name of the supplier or payment recipient, order number, contract number, or other reference.

2. Freezing of 25% of the Aliyah and Absorption Department Budget in 2025

In the protocol of the Absorption Committee dated 8.12.2025, it was recorded that 25% of the department's budget was frozen by the municipality.
It was subsequently written that the department's employees made efforts to carry out the bulk of the activities and utilize the remaining budget. This appears explicitly in the official protocol.

In light of the above, I request to receive:
The exact amount that was frozen;
A breakdown of the budget items included in the freeze;
The date of the freeze;
The identity of the authorized entity that made or approved the decision;
A copy of the decision, directive, or document upon which the budget was frozen;
Any document documenting the modification or cancellation of the freeze;
The amounts subsequently released, to the extent they were released; and
The amount left unutilized at the end of 2025.

3. Suppliers, Contracts, Engagements, and Contractor Works

I request to receive a list of all suppliers, associations, companies, and other external bodies that received payments from the Aliyah and Absorption Department budget in the years 2024–2026.

Regarding each engagement, I request to receive, to the extent the information exists in the municipal systems:
The name of the payment recipient;
The purpose of the engagement;
The engagement amount;
The amount actually paid;
The engagement period;
The order or contract number;
The method of selecting the supplier – tender, price quotations, tender exemption, sole supplier, or other procedure; and
A copy of the agreement or order.

I specifically request the breakdown concerning the budget items for contractor works, absorption operations under contracts, and absorption employees.

4. Employees of the Aliyah and Absorption Department and the Source of Their Employment

I request to receive an up-to-date staffing table of the Aliyah and Absorption Department, as well as the staffing tables for the years 2024 and 2025, to the extent they exist.

There is no need to provide personal information that is irrelevant to the request.

I request that the information include:
The job title;
The scope of the position (part-time/full-time percentage);
The source of funding – municipality, Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, or another body;
Whether the employee is a municipal employee or employed via an external body; and
If it is an external body – the name of the employing body and the contractual basis for the engagement.

I specifically request to clarify, through existing documents, the changes that occurred in the years 2024–2026 in positions dealing with immigrants from former Soviet Union countries.

In the September 2025 protocol, two female employees appear in this field.

In the December 2025 protocol, it was reported that a reduction in the standard staff quota occurred in this field.

I request to receive the documents documenting the change, its date, the source of the decision, and the source of funding for the positions before and after the change.

5. Work Plans, Success Metrics, and Results

I request to receive the work plans of the Aliyah and Absorption Department for the years 2024, 2025, and 2026, including:
Objectives;
Tasks;
Success metrics;
Quantitative execution targets;
Measurement and control reports; and
Summary or follow-up reports on the execution of the work plan.

In addition, I request to receive data existing in the department's systems, including the customer relationship management system or any other system where data is stored, regarding the years 2024–2026, to the extent they were collected:
The number of immigrants who approached the department;
The number of immigrants who received assistance in the field of employment;
The number of immigrants referred to employers;
The number of immigrants who integrated into work following an activity or referral by the department, to the extent this figure is measured;
The number of participants in employment fairs;
The number of people who received assistance in having academic or professional degrees recognized;
The number of participants in Hebrew study programs;
The number of graduates of the programs;
The number of participants in professional programs;
The number of participants in the department's core projects.

In the Absorption Committee protocol from March 2026, it was reported that the department maintains a database of employers willing to absorb new immigrants, assists in preparing CVs and transmitting documents for the purpose of degree recognition, and holds an annual employment fair.

In light of this, I request to receive the success metrics determined for these activities and the actual execution data existing in practice.

To the extent that the municipality does not collect or hold a specific piece of data from the aforementioned data, I request to state this explicitly.

6. "Beit Canada" Absorption Center and Absorption Apartments

During 2024, the option of making a number of absorption apartments in the "Beit Canada" complex available to new immigrants was discussed in the Absorption Committee.

In contrast, in the Absorption Committee protocol dated 8.12.2025, it was stated that there are no absorption apartments in Ashdod and that the "Beit Canada" absorption center has been closed.

In light of this, I request to receive all documents in the possession of the municipality concerning the subject starting from 1.1.2024, including:
Documents and correspondence with the Jewish Agency;
Documents and correspondence with Amigour;
Documents and correspondence with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration;
Agreements or drafts of agreements concerning the operation of "Beit Canada";
Decisions or documents concerning the provision of 5–10 absorption apartments for new immigrants;
The date the apartments were actually made available, if they were;
The number of apartments actually operated;
Their period of operation;
The number of immigrants or families who used them;
The identity of the body that operated and financed the apartments;
Documents concerning the cessation of activities;
The date of closure of the absorption center and documents explaining the reason for its closure; and
Information regarding activities of the municipality or the Aliyah and Absorption Department currently taking place in the complex, to the extent they exist.

7. Municipal Absorption Committee Meetings

I request to receive a full list of all municipal Absorption Committee meetings held in the years 2024, 2025, and 2026 up to the date of providing the response.

Regarding each meeting, I request to receive:
Date;
Agenda;
Protocol;
Decisions made;
Documents presented to committee members; and
Reports or follow-up documents regarding the implementation of committee decisions, to the extent they exist.

I request to include also meetings that took place but whose protocols do not appear on the municipality's website.

8. Implementation of Absorption Committee Decisions

I request to receive documents documenting the implementation of Absorption Committee decisions in the years 2024–2026.

Among other things, at a meeting in 2024, a decision was made to act vis-à-vis various entities for the purpose of preparing informative videos for immigrants on the subject of fraud prevention.

In the subsequent meeting, it was reported that about ten workshops were held in cooperation with a community police officer, but the protocol contains no breakdown regarding the implementation of the decision concerning the videos.

Therefore, I request to receive, to the extent they exist:
The produced videos;
Work orders;
Production cost;
The name of the entity that performed the work;
Publication dates;
Viewing or exposure data in the possession of the municipality.

If the videos were not produced, I request to receive a document existing in the municipality that records the non-implementation of the decision or the modification of the decision, to the extent it exists.

9. Events, Conferences, Fairs, Gifts, and Refreshments

I request to receive a breakdown of the Aliyah and Absorption Department's expenses in the years 2024–2026 for:
Events;
Festivals;
Conferences;
Employment fairs;
Aliyah Day events;
Gifts or holiday presents for immigrants;
Refreshments and catering;
Advertising and marketing;
Printing;
Transportation;
Photography and content production; and
Travel or participation in conferences in Israel and abroad, to the extent they were financed from the department's budget.

Regarding each expense, I request to receive the supplier's name, payment amount, purpose of the expense, order number, and engagement procedure.

10. Aliyah Data Upon Which Department Activities Are Based

I request to receive the statistical data upon which the activities of the Aliyah and Absorption Department are planned, for the years 2022–2026, to the extent they are in the possession of the municipality.

I request, to the extent possible, a breakdown by:
Year of aliyah;
Country or region of origin;
Age;
Number of immigrants who arrived in Ashdod; and
Their number known to the municipality as residing in the city.

In the November 2024 protocol, it was reported that during 2024, about 1,600 immigrants arrived in Ashdod, of whom 1,136 were from former Soviet Union countries, 133 from France, and about 100 from the United States.

I request to receive the source of the data used to present these figures and the original tables, to the extent they are in the possession of the municipality.

11. Information Published on the Municipality Website

I request to receive the data source and the date of the last update of the data published on the Ashdod Municipality website on the Aliyah and Absorption Department page regarding the immigrant population in the city.

In addition, I request to receive the date of the last update of the list of functionaries appearing on the department's website and the updated list as it is in the possession of the municipality.

Method of Providing the Information

I request to receive the information in a digital format and in the original format in which it is held in the municipal systems, to the extent possible.

In particular, data and tables held in Excel, CSV files, or another computerized format are requested in that format and not as a scanned printout, to the extent this is possible.

There is no need to create new tables for the request, perform new analyses, or process information that does not exist.

To the extent that a document includes information that must not be provided by law, I request to provide the remainder of the document after redacting the protected details, to the extent possible.

To the extent that certain information is not in the possession of the municipality, I request to state this explicitly.

To the extent that the information is in the possession of another unit in the municipality, I request to forward the request to the appropriate entity or notify the applicant where the information is located.

Legal Basis for the Request

This request is submitted pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5758–1998.

Section 7 of the Law stipulates that a request for information must be submitted in writing to the officer for making information available to the public, and that the applicant is not obligated to state the reason for their request. As a general rule, the authority must notify of its decision on the request within 30 days of its receipt, subject to the extension options enumerated in the law.

Pursuant to Section 7(e) of the Law, the information is requested as it is held by the public authority, and the request does not demand that the municipality process the information in accordance with the applicant's needs.

To the extent that there is a legal impediment to providing part of the requested information, it is requested to act in accordance with the principle set forth in Section 11 of the Law and provide the bulk of the information that can be provided, omitting only the protected part when possible. Section 11 of the Law explicitly deals with providing partial information and providing information under conditions.

To the extent that the request, in whole or in part, is denied, I request to receive a reasoned decision in writing, indicating the grounds and the legal section upon which the decision is based regarding each item of information not provided.

I request confirmation of receipt of the request and an inquiry number for tracking purposes.

Sincerely,

"Ashdod is Us" Forum

Through: Michael Titivsky

Date: __________ 30.08.2026