Updated on April 5, 2016
Confronting the anti-Israel BDS Movement:
A Summary of Successful Legislative
Initiatives in the U.S.A. and Canada
To date, 16 States in the U.S.A., as well as the U.S. Congress and the
Canadian House of Commons have enacted legislative initiatives in
response to the anti-Israel ‘Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions’ movement.
Sub-National Legislative Initiatives (listed in chronological order)
Tennessee
Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 170: Condemns the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions
movement and increasing incidents of anti-Semitism
 In April 2015, the Tennessee General Assembly became the first state legislature in the
United States to formally condemn the BDS movement against Israel. 1
South Carolina
House Bill (HB) 3583: Procurement with Boycotter and the Iran Divestment Act
 South Carolina passed a law in June 2015 that “bars state agencies from contracting
business that boycotts others ‘based on race, color, religion, gender, or national origin’”
– including boycotts of the state of Israel.2
Illinois
Senate Bill (SB) 1761 – State Prohibited Transactions
 Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed a bill into law in July 2015 to combat the antiIsrael BDS movement.3
Pennsylvania
SR-136 – Condemning Boycotts of Israel, House Resolution (HR) 370
 The Pennsylvania Senate passed a resolution in September 2015 condemning the
“economic, social, cultural and other boycotts of Israel and growing incidents of
antisemitism”; the House previously passed a similar resolution.4
Ohio
HB-486
 In October 2015, Ohio introduced a law that will “prevent the state from conducting
business with organizations or individuals who participate in boycotting Israel.” 5
New York
SB-6378A
 The New York Senate passed a bill in January 2016 “that prohibits the state from doing
business with companies that seek to harm Israel and other American allies through
boycotts and discriminatory economic agendas.”6
California
Assembly Bill (AB) 1552: “State Funds: Divestment: Foreign Boycotts of Israel”
 In early January 2016, California Assemblyman Travis Allen introduced a bill that “would
prohibit state-run government entities from doing business with companies” engaging
in boycotts of Israel. 7
Florida
SB-86: Scrutinized Companies, HR 1001
 Florida’s Senate overwhelmingly passed a bill in February 2016 to deter corporate
entities from participating in the BDS movement against Israel.8
 Florida’s House of Representatives also passed a bill in March 2016 “that will prohibit
the state from doing business with companies that comply with boycotts of Israel.”9
Georgia
SB-327
 Georgia State Senator Judson Hill introduced a bill in February 2016 “in an effort to
outlaw government contracts with businesses that boycott Israel.”10
Alabama
SJR-6 – Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) Movement against Israel, denounced
 In February 2016, Alabama’s Legislature “unanimously passed a joint resolution
denouncing the BDS movement and reaffirming support for the State of Israel.” 11
Iowa
SSB-3087
 The Iowa House of Representatives voted in February 2016 “to block the state from
investing in companies that are publicly boycotting Israel.”12
Indiana
SR-74, HB-1378
 In April 2015 the Indiana General Assembly Passed an Anti-BDS resolution13 and in
March 2016, the “Indiana Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill banning state dealings
with entities that boycott Israel or its settlements.”14
Colorado
HB-16-284
 The Colorado Senate passed a bill in March 2016 “that would require the state’s pension
fund to divest from companies that participate in a boycott against Israel.”15
Virginia
HJR-177
 The Virginia House of Delegates also passed a resolution in March 2016 condemning the
BDS movement against Israel.16
Arizona
HB-2617
 Arizona’s House of Representatives approved “legislation that would bar state and local
governments from conducting businesses with companies that boycott Israel.”17
New Jersey
No. 1923
 “New Jersey’s State Senate passed legislation prohibiting pension and annuity funds
from being invested in companies that boycott Israel.”18
National Legislative Initiatives
U.S. Congress
HB-644
 The U.S. Congress recently passed the ‘Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of
2015’ a trade and customs bill that contains “provisions designed to oppose boycotts
and similar economic warfare against Israel.”19 In February 2016, President Barack
Obama signed this bill into law.20
Canadian House of Commons
Vote No. 14
 Canada’s House of Commons passed a motion formally condemning the anti-Israel BDS
movement on February 22, 2016.21
France
Loi 2003-88 “Lellouche’s Law”
 Since 2003, France has had in place a law that imposes strict sentences for hate crimes,
including antisemitism.22 Recently, this law has been used successfully to convict antiIsrael BDS activists of committing hate crimes, which puts France at the forefront of
efforts to combat the BDS movement through legal means.23
Appendix - References
1
Tennessee General Assembly becomes first state legislature to condemn BDS,” http://www.jns.org/newsbriefs/2015/4/21/tennessee-general-assembly-becomes-first-state-legislature-to-condemn-bds#.VuL06PkrLIU=
2
Rosenberg, Yair, “South Carolina Passes Anti-BDS Bill,” http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/191437/south-carolinapasses-anti-bds-bill
3
“Illinois Governor Signs Unprecedented Anti-BDS Bill Into Law,” http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/07/24/illinoisgovernor-signs-unprecedented-anti-bds-bill-into-law/#
4
“Pennsylvania Senate passes anti-BDS Resolution,”
http://www.heritagefl.com/story/2015/10/09/news/pennsylvania-senate-passes-anti-bds-resolution/5089.html
5
Zalman, Jonathan. “Ohio Becomes Latest State to Introduce Anti-BDS law,”
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/194156/ohio-becomes-latest-state-to-introduce-anti-bds-bill
6
“New York Passes Legislation Against BDS,”
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/206887#.VuL1WPkrLIU
7
Zalman, Jonathan. “California Assemblyman Introduced Anti-BDS Bill,”
http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/196373/california-assemblyman-introduces-anti-bds-bill
8
“Florida Legislature Passes Anti-BDS Bill,” http://www.timesofisrael.com/florida-legislature-passes-anti-bdsmeasure/
9
Benveniste, Shelley, “Florida House Passes Anti-BDS Legislation,”
http://www.jewishpress.com/sections/community/south-florida/florida-house-passes-anti-bdslegislation/2016/03/14/
10
Simonton, Anna. “Georgia is the latest state to consider anti-BDS legislation,”
http://mondoweiss.net/2016/02/georgia-is-the-latest-state-to-consider-anti-bds-legislation/
11
“Alabama Legislature Unanimously Condemns Anti-Israel BDS Movement,”
http://www.sjlmag.com/2016/02/alabama-legislature-unanimously.html
12
Pfannenstiel, Brianne, “Iowa House votes to keep state funds from companies boycotting Israel,”
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2016/02/23/iowa-house-votes-keep-state-fundscompanies-boycotting-israel/80818558/
13
nd
“Indiana General Assembly Becomes 2 State Legislature to Pass Anti-BDS Bill,”
http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/04/30/indiana-general-assembly-becomes-2nd-state-legislature-to-pass-antibds-bill/
14
“Indiana Passes BDS Resolution,” http://forward.com/news/breaking-news/334842/indiana-passes-bdsresolution/
15
“Colorado Senate Passes Bill Opposing BDS,” http://www.cjnews.com/news/international/colorado-senatepasses-bill-opposing-bds
16
Oster, Marcy, “Virginia General Assembly Passes Anti-BDS Resolution,”
http://www.stljewishlight.com/news/world/article_df3c5aec-dfb8-5ee1-944a-4d2058bcf920.html
17
“Arizona Latest State to Approve Anti-BDS Legislation,” http://www.cjnews.com/news/international/arizonalatest-state-to-approve-anti-bds-legislation
18
Ariel, Ben. “New Jersey Passes Anti-BDS Legislation,”
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/212149#.VzTLCIQrLIU
19
Kontorovich, Eugene, “Obama Signs Israel Anti-Boycott Provisions into Law, Settlements and All,”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2016/02/25/obama-signs-israel-anti-boycottprovisions-into-law-settlements-and-all/
20
Kontorovich, Eugene, “Obama Signs Israel Anti-Boycott Provisions into Law, Settlements and All,”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2016/02/25/obama-signs-israel-anti-boycottprovisions-into-law-settlements-and-all/
21
“Canadian Parliament Overwhelmingly Passes BDS motion,” http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/CanadianParliament-overwhelmingly-passes-anti-BDS-motion-445797
22
https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000781920&categorieLien=id
23
http://www.jta.org/2016/04/04/news-opinion/world/french-bds-activists-lose-high-court-appeal-over-racismconvictions