Legislation
SB 1250 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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SB 1250 amends Arizona’s anti-boycott law (HB 2617 as amended by SB 1167) to include public universities and community colleges in the definition of “public entities,” that are  prohibited from investing in or entering into contracts with companies that boycott Israel or territories occupied by Israel. A federal court blocked enforcement of HB 2617 in September 2018, finding that the law would likely violate the First Amendment. Subsequent amendments removed the plaintiffs challenging the law from its reach by limiting its scope to entities with more than 10 employees and contracts more than $100,000. The law continues to require a written certification for state contractors as well as the creation of a blacklist of companies in which state retirement plans and public entities are prohibited from investing.  According to Mark Swenson, the Deputy State Treasurer of Arizona, who testified when the bill was introduced, the amendment was prompted by Ben and Jerry’s 2021 announcement that it would end sales of its ice cream in Occupied Palestinian Territory. In response to Ben and Jerry’s announcement, relying on the state’s anti-boycott law, Arizona withdrew $143 million worth of state investments from Unilever, Ben and Jerry’s parent company. Elected officials sought to close a “gap in public policy” by requiring public universities to be subject to the same anti-boycott law. The governor signed the bill in March 2022, and it went into effect in September 2022. 

Legislation
HB 2136 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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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.

Legislation
HB 2050 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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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

Legislation
SB 1993 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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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.

Legislation
HB 1161 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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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. 

Legislation
HB 239 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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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. 

Legislation
LB 845 (2022)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with companies, including non-profits, that boycott Israel or entities doing business in or with Israel. The prohibition extends to boycotts of entities “authorized by, licensed by, or organized under the laws of 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. 

Legislation
HRes 474 (2021)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Full Text
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This non-binding resolution condemns and calls for the censure of Representatives Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for criticizing Israel and calling for accountability for all crimes against humanity, including those committed by the U.S. and Israel. Among the statements called out for condemnation and censure are accusations that Israel has “‘committed human rights abuses,’” that it is an “‘apartheid state’” engaged in “‘ethnic cleansing’” of Palestinians, and that Israel’s military response to rockets fired by Hamas in Gaza were not acts of self-defense – all of which are claims supported by U.N. investigations and human rights organizations. The resolution smears the expression of support for Palestinian rights as resulting in anti-Jewish violence.

Legislation
HR 0294 (2021)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Full Text
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This non-binding resolution encourages the University of Illinois Board of Trustees to use the IHRA definition of antisemitism as a basis for recommending policies and actions to address antisemitism on campus. The distorted IHRA definition has been widely criticized for conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism, resulting in the silencing of advocates for Palestinian rights. The resolution asks the Board to report to the Board of Higher Education and the Illinois General Assembly every 180 days on steps being taken to implement such policies, which could include mandating campus training or enforcing a student code of conduct. Relying on the IHRA definition for such policies could turn criticism of Israel into a violation of the student code of conduct.

Legislation
A 8271 (2021)
Status
In Effect
In Effect Since
September 2022
Type(s)
Anti-boycott
Full Text
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This anti-boycott bill prohibits state contracts with and state investment—both direct and indirect—in companies that boycott Israel. The bill calls for the creation of a blacklist of restricted companies from which the state must divest and in which it cannot directly invest. The bill excludes indirect investments where it is unlikely that more than 0.05% of the fund’s total investments is invested in blacklisted companies. The bill also prohibits state contracts of any value with entities that boycott Israel, requiring the commissioner of taxation and finance to confirm that the company is not engaged in prohibited boycotts before accepting a bid. This bill expands the scope of New York’s executive order prohibiting state investment in companies that boycott Israel.