State Contracts

This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with companies, including non-profits, that boycott Israel or entities “authorized, licensed, or organized to do business by the State of Israel,” which would encompass illegal Israeli settlements. Contractors must provide a written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in such boycotts. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $100,000 and contractors that have fewer than 10 employees.

This anti-boycott bill prohibits any public body from contracting with entities that boycott Israel or illegal Israeli settlements. Contractors are required to certify in writing that they will not boycott Israel for the duration of the contract. These written certifications are to be made publicly available. The bill applies to contracts in excess of $100,000 with any contractor having more than 10 employees. Contractors that boycott in violation of these requirements will be subject to civil penalties an amount equal to three times the contract. Additionally, this bill bars institutions of higher education from boycotting Israel and requires the board of each public institution of higher education to certify in writing that they will not boycott Israel or illegal Israeli settlements. Related bill: HB 1898.

HB 1898 is an anti-boycott bill that prohibits public bodies in Virginia from contracting with entities that engage in boycott activity against Israel or entities “authorized by, licensed by, or organized under the laws of the State of Israel,” which encompass illegal Israeli settlements. This bill requires potential contractors to certify that they will not boycott Israel during the performance of the contract and applies to contracts worth over $100,000 and to contractors with more than 10 employees. The contractor is also required to impose the written certification on subcontracts or purchases over $10,000. Earlier versions of the bill included a civil penalty of three times the amount of the contract for violations of these requirements. It also prohibited public institutions of higher education in Virginia from boycotting Israel and imposed written certification requirements. Related bills: SB 1375.

This bill, formerly HSB 639, amends Iowa’s 2016 anti-boycott law (HF 2331), and expands the definition of companies subject to the law  to include a “wholly owned subsidiary, majority-owned subsidiary, parent company, or affiliate of such business or business.”

Iowa’s anti-boycott law requires state entities to create a blacklist of entities that boycott Israel and territories it occupies. The law prohibits state entities from investing in or contracting with blacklisted entities for contracts of $1,000 or more.  The amendments in HF 2373 are specifically aimed at Ben & Jerry’s and in response to the ice cream company’s 2021 announcement that it would stop doing business in illegal Israeli settlements. Ben and Jerry’s and its London-based parent company, Unilever, have come under attack from Israel and its allies who have called for states to use anti-boycott laws to divest from Unilever. The bill went into effect in July 2022. Related bill: SF 2265.

This bill amends Ohio’s 2017 anti-boycott law (HB 476), which prohibits state contracts with companies, including sole proprietors, that boycott any jurisdiction with which Ohio can enjoy open trade, including Israel and the territories it occupies. The amendment expands the scope of the law to include state institutions of higher education in the definition of state agencies to which the anti-boycott law applies. In addition, this bill requires state schools to make free expression policies, including the anti-boycott law, available to all students and to create formal processes to adjudicate complaints of free speech violations by university employees. The bill went into effect in July 2022.

This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with companies, including nonprofits, that boycott Israel or its illegal settlements. Contractors must provide a written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in such boycotts. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $250,000 and contractors with fewer than 10 employees. A similar bill targeting boycotts for Palestinian rights was introduced in 2018 and failed to pass. Related bills: HB 2050, SB 1993.

This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with companies, including nonprofits, that boycott Israel or its illegal settlements. Contractors must provide a written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in such boycotts. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $250,000 and contractors with fewer than 10 employees. A similar bill targeting boycotts for Palestinian rights was introduced in 2018 and failed to pass. A companion bill (SB 1993) passed and will go into effect in July 2022. Related bill: HB 2136. 

This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with companies, including nonprofits, that boycott Israel or its illegal settlements. Contractors must provide a written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in such boycotts. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $250,000 and contractors with fewer than 10 employees. A similar bill targeting boycotts for Palestinian rights was introduced in 2018 and failed to pass. Related bills: HB 2050, HB 2136. The bill passed and went into effect in July 2022.

This anti-boycott bill requires state contractors to provide a written certification that they will not engage in boycotts of Israel or its illegal settlements. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $10,000. 

This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with entities, including non-profits, that boycott Israel or entities doing business in or with Israel. The prohibition extends to boycotts of entities “authorized, licensed, or organized to do business by the State of Israel,” which would encompass boycotts of Israel’s illegal settlements. Contractors must provide a written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in boycotts of Israel. The bill excludes contracts whose total value is less than $100,000 and contractors that have fewer than 10 full time employees.