Local councils (singular: מוֹעָצָה מְקוֹמִית Mo'atza Mekomit; ; singular: مجلس محلّي Majlis Mahallī) are one of the three types of local government found in Israel, the other two being cities and regional councils. There are 124 local councils in Israel, including 69 Arab local councils. 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 of a scale 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 to decide if a locality meets the requirements of a municipal council (a city). The minister then reviews the residents request, which may include the locality remaining a local council despite meeting the city status requirements (e.g., Ramat HaSharon, which did not become a city until 2002 due to its residents wanting to preserve its image as a small town), or becoming part of a regional council. The Union of Local Authorities in Israel (ULAI) is the umbrella organization of local councils which represents their collective interests vis-à-vis the national government. It traces its roots to the League of National Councils, which had been established under 1938 under the British Mandate.