Israel Anti-Boycott Act

Proposed federal US bill, designed to reduce boycotts against Israel ( Learn how and when to remove this message ) The Israel Anti-Boycott Act is a proposed bill that is designed to permit U.S. states to freely enact laws that would require contractors to sign a pledge saying that they would not boycott any goods from Israel, or their contracts would be terminated. The bill would also amend the Export Administration Act of 1979 . Although the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, consisting of House and Senate bills, H.R. 1697 and S.720, died in the previous, 115th session of Congress, it is a recurrent issue in American foreign policy and will continue to be taken up in the legislature. Israel was the United States 18th and 24th largest import and export partner in 2017, respectively. Beyond exports and imports U.S. foreign direct investment was $26.7 billion in 2017. It has 58 cosponsors in the Senate (42 Republicans, 15 Democrats, 1 Independent), and 292 cosponsors in the House (216 Republicans, 76 Democrats). It has been drafted by Senators Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and introduced to the United States Congress in 2018.

Proposed federal US bill, designed to reduce boycotts against Israel The Israel Anti-Boycott Act (IABA) ( H.R. 1697 ; S. 720 ) was a proposed anti-BDS law and amendment to the Export Administration Act of 1979 designed to allow U.S. states to enact laws requiring contractors to sign pledges promising not to boycott any goods from Israel, or their contracts would be terminated. The proposed law was a response to the BDS movement 's call for boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel. As of 2020, 32 state legislatures have already passed bills similar to IABA. If the law was passed in the federal legislature, it would be easier to enforce. Critics of the law and supporters of BDS claims that it is unconstitutional. They claim that participation in politically motivated boycotts is a form of free speech protected by the First Amendment and that anti-BDS laws are a form of lawfare . IABA was drafted by Senators Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and introduced to the 115th session of Congress in 2018. It had 58 cosponsors in the Senate, and 292 cosponsors in the House (216 Republicans, 76 Democrats). The act consisted of House and Senate bills HR 1697 and S 720 and died in Congress. However, there is strong opposition to BDS in American politics and the act is expected to make a resurgence in the federal legislature in the future. In the 115th session of Congress it had 58 cosponsors in the Senate (42 Republicans, 15 Democrats, 1 Independent). The 115th Congress considered, but did not pass, two major anti-BDS bills. The Israel Anti-Boycott Act (IABA) sought to extend existing anti-boycott provisions in U.S. law to cover explicitly boycotts initiated by international governmental organizations, such as the United Nations.