All of this combined has a consequential impact on the economic capacity of the Umm al-Fahm municipality and local business owners. This is reflected in: • An economy that is severely restricted by the absence of agricultural, commercial and industrial zones. Further, the ratio of commercial and industrial zones in Palestinian areas is significantly lower than in IsraeliJewish areas. This has an adverse impact on the competitiveness of Umm al-Fahm and drives 55 percent of employed residents to seek employment outside the city.339 “You could find an [Israeli-Jewish] colony with a population of 200 that has a better economy than a Palestinian city with a population of 80,000 people due to the absence of an industrial area or only having a small industrial zone.”340 • Rates are significantly higher for commercial and industrial taxes than for residential taxes. As Umm al-Fahm is predominantly a residential area, the municipal taxes that are collected by the municipality are significantly lower compared with Israeli-Jewish areas that comprise more commercial and industrial areas.341 • The income derived from property tax rates levied is reduced, because the rates which are set by the Israeli government342 are disproportionately high compared to the quantity and quality of services provided in Umm al-Fahm,343 and many residents have their fees waived due to their low-income status.344 This then means that Umm al-Fahm’s regular budget is heavily dependent on government funding,345 translating into a lack of both political leverage in decision-making and an absence of financial means to engage in adequate infrastructure construction work.346 This paves the way for housing crises, lack of public buildings for services and employment, and leads to the creeping de-development of the city, which is actually the result of systemic discrimination at each stage of the planning process and the discriminate allocation of public funds. In other words, this induces a structural disparity 339 OECD, supra 282, 125. 340 Traffic and Transportation Engineer, supra 319. 341 Traffic and Transportation Engineer, supra 319. Jabbarin, supra 281. OECD, supra 282, 124-125. 342 OECD, supra 282, 125. 343 Ibid. 344 Id., 126. 345 Id., 126. 346 Jabbarin, supra 281. 85