Business License for Water or Sewage Plants - Following the "Tnuva" Ruling

The Supreme Court has lately referred to the question which businesses must apply for a business license. Here is a brief summary of the Tnuva case:

Tnuva owns in Petah Tikva a food distribution center operated by trucks which has a business license. The trucks are washed in a washing device located inside the distribution center. This washing device requires a business license according to the law of business licensing.

Tnuva was charged for operating the washing device without a license. The court had to decide if this device needed a separate business license or whether the license for the distribution center was sufficient.

At first, the court decided that since it has no commercial nature and is only of secondary importance, the washing device should not be regarded as a business needing its own license. At the appeal, the district court has ruled that a business for washing cars does need a license but in this case its activity is of little importance for the distribution center and is an integral part of the center therefore it doesn’t require a license of its own.

The areticle  relates to the  four initial tests by which the court decides if a certain business which is part of a bigger one requires a separate business license.