The government is gearing for its vote on the Clean Air bill, but the proposed plan is nothing like the one that passed its preliminary reading a year ago. The bill has undergone a significant "diet" and instead of the original appropriation of NIS 690 million (about $173 million), it now faces and appropriation of only NIS 225 million ($56.4 million). The original Clean Bill Act was passed by the Knesset in 2007. According to the Israel Union for Environmental Defense the legislative "diet" also extended to several key articles, all meant to significantly improve Israel's air quality via a set of rigorous regulations. The changes, the group said, are all pointing to the fact that the new bill's goals are far less clear air-conducive. Some of the articles omitted include regulations that would have affected the Israel Electric Corp and polluting industries, and also reduced the funds allotted to the Transportation Ministry's car scrapping incentives program, the national environmental monitoring program and various other incentive programs meant to prompt industries to make the switch to clean energy. "The finance minister fails to understand that there are lives at stake and that he will be responsible for the fact that the lack of funding will bring about more illnesses, more deaths and billions in losses for the Israeli market," Attorney Amit Bracha, CEO of the Israel Union for Environmental Defense, said. "The current bill demonstrates only how the government has caved in before the clean air achievements. This bill wouldn’t have even been presented if our organization hadn’t petitioned the Supreme Court. "A government that seeks to maintain its public's health and the environment must pull this bill and replace it with an ambitious, unwavering plan," he stated. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter