Defeated

HR 4009 is an antisemitism redefinition bill titled the Anti-Semitism Awareness Act of 2019. This bill directs the U.S. Department of Education to consider the definition of antisemitism adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), including the contemporary examples related to Israel, when investigating complaints of antisemitism on campuses. The IHRA definition and the problematic contemporary examples falsely conflate political criticism of Israel with antisemitism and are so broad and vague they could encompass virtually all criticism of Israel and Israeli government policies. The bill adds no new legal protections for Jewish students, but will likely be used to justify federal investigations into Palestine activism on campuses. Substantially similar versions of this bill were introduced and failed to pass in 2016 (S 10, HR 6421) and 2018 (S 2940, HR 5924). In December 2019, Donald Trump signed an executive order (EO 13899) adopting this distorted definition. Related legislation: S 852.

HRes 764 is a non-binding resolution expressing support for Trump’s executive order (EO 13899) that adopted a distorted definition of antisemitism. The resolution also references HRes 246, which opposed boycotts for Palestinian rights, as an example of “the United States unwavering support for the Jewish people and strong condemnation of anti-Semitism”—explicitly and falsely linking opposition to boycotts for justice with efforts to combat anti-Jewish hatred.

HRes 782 is a non-binding resolution that encourages public schools to teach about the “historic importance of the creation of the Jewish State of Israel in 1948” as part of broader curricula around the history of antisemitism and the Holocaust. The resolution’s preambulatory language claims that campus advocacy involving boycotts for Palestinian rights has exposed Jewish students to “rampant anti-Semitism.” The resolution makes this claim after ten examples of antisemitic violence, assaults, graffiti, threats, and killings—implicitly and falsely linking acts motivated by anti-Jewish hatred with student advocacy for Palestinian human rights.

In addition, the curricula called for in the resolution would likely not include how at least 75 percent of Palestinians became refugees due to Israel’s founding, and that Israel has since barred them from returning. This act of ethnic cleansing and forced exile is why some activists oppose Israel’s existence – a stance that other legislative efforts seek to paint as antisemitic using a distorted definition of antisemitism.

HR 5595, titled the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, is an anti-boycott bill that criminalizes participation in boycotts of Israel, singling out international efforts to hold Israel accountable for its illegal settlements. The bill amends the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA) of 2018, a successor to the Export Administration Act of 1979 that targeted the Arab League boycott, to prohibit U.S. entities from complying with or supporting boycotts of Israel fostered or imposed by international governmental organizations. This prohibition includes “furnishing information” for the U.N. Human Rights Council’s database of entities contributing to Israel’s illegal settlements. Violations may be punishable by severe fines, up to $300,000 in civil cases and up to $1 million in criminal cases, though the possibility of prison time included in previous iterations has been removed. 

The bill conflates coercive commercial boycotts—like the Arab League boycott where U.S. companies were forced to boycott Israel as a condition of doing business with other foreign parties—with constitutionally protected political expression in support of Palestinian rights. 

Similar bills failed to pass in the last Congress after multiple revisions (S 720, HR 1697).

This non-binding resolution rejects boycotts for Palestinian rights, specifically focusing on university campuses and academic boycotts. It affirms support for Israel and opposes “efforts to assault the legitimacy of Israel as the sovereign homeland of the Jewish people.”

HCR 8004 is a non-binding resolution affirming Israel’s right to exist and South Dakota’s relationship with Israel. The resolution falsely claims that boycotts for Palestinian rights are one of the main drivers of antisemitism and have resulted in intimidation of Jewish students on college campuses. The resolution declares that Israel “is neither an attacking force or an occupier of the lands of others.” Related legislation: HCR 6005.

HB 279 is an anti-boycott bill that prohibits state contracts with and state investment in companies that boycott Israel or territories occupied by Israel. For contracts worth more than $50,000, contractors must provide written certification that they are not and will not for the duration of the contract engage in boycotts of Israel. 

HJ 4 is a joint resolution rejecting BDS and calling on state agencies to take into consideration a company’s participation in boycotts of Israel in awarding grants or contracts or making investments.

SJR 88 is a non-binding resolution that condemns boycott, divestment, and sanctions efforts for Palestinian rights and “opposes all efforts to assault the legitimacy of Israel as the sovereign homeland of the Jewish people.”

AJR 103 is a non-binding resolution that condemns boycott, divestment, and sanctions efforts for Palestinian rights and “opposes all efforts to assault the legitimacy of Israel as the sovereign homeland of the Jewish people.”