California

There are currently one active and two inactive anti-BDS bills pending in the California state legislature: 

• Active:  (updated 8/4/2016) AB 2844 has been amended numerous times. In its current form, it would require certain state contractors to certify, under penalty of perjury, that they are in compliance with pre-existing California anti-discrimination laws and that any policy they have against a sovereign nation is "not a pretext for discrimination" in violation of those anti-discrimination laws.  
• Inactive:
  • AB 1551 would prohibit California's public pension funds from investing in companies that boycott Israel.
  • AB 1552 prohibits the state of California from doing business with contractors that are engaged in boycotts based on race, color, religion, gender, or nationality. AB 1552 is an anti-discrimination measure that does not mention BDS or Israel. Though it has been characterized as an anti-BDS bill, it is our position that it does not affect BDS, since BDS is not motivated by "nationality" or "religion" but by the policies of the state of Israel. 

Find out more:

• LA Times Editorial:  Boycotts of Israel are a Protected Form of Free Speech, July 5, 2016
• Share with your legislator:
  • Stop AB 2844 (formerly 1551 & 1552) Coalition -- list of endorsing organizations (updated July 2016)
  • Resources/Memos on current bill AB 2844 (updated Aug 4, 2016):
    • Summary of opposition to AB 2844, August 2016
    • Coalition Memo against AB 2844, submitted to Senate Appropriations Committee, July 2016
    • Coalition Memo against AB 2844, submitted to Senate Judiciary Committee, June 2016
    • Coalition One-Pager
    • ACLU-CA memo of opposition, June 2016
    • Read the bill, AB 2844 
• Resources for previous versions of AB 2844
  • May 2016
    • One-Pager of the amended bill AB 2844 & full legal analysis of the amended bill AB 2844
    • The above documents were drafted in response to amendments made on April 26, 2016. Click here to read the amended bill as of April 26, 2016
  • April 2016
    • Legal analysis and one-pager from Stop AB 2844 Coalition
    • Memo to Assembly Judiciary Committee from Stop AB 2844 Coalition
    • Legal analysis of AB 2844 by the California Assembly Judiciary Committee
    • Legal analysis of AB 2844 by Bill of Rights Defense Committee 
    • Legal analysis by ACLU-CA
    • The above documents were drafted in response to the original version of the bill, AB 2844. Click here to read the original version of AB 2844.
  • AB 1551 & AB 1552
    • Legal analysis & one-pager by Palestine Legal, National Lawyers Guild, Center for Constitutional Rights on AB 1551 & AB 1552
    • Read the bills: AB 1551 (Pension Fund Divestment) & AB 1552 (Government Contracts) 

Remember

These bills are the result of a campaign to suppress Palestine human rights activism in the U.S. Israel's interest in restricting this activism should not override our constitutional right to advocate for change. 

The good news is that your right to engage in boycotts related to Israeli human rights abuses and to advocate for BDS is protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. None of the bills and resolutions described here prohibit you from engaging in BDS activities.

Whatever your views on Israel and Palestine, these bills should be of concern because they threaten the rights of everyone in the U.S. to take collective action to address injustice. Moreover, we should all be alarmed that a foreign government, Israel, is lobbying U.S. politicians to restrict our rights.