How Many States Is It Illegal to Boycott Israel? 2026

As of 2026, approximately 35 states have passed some form of anti-BDS legislation that restricts boycotts of Israel, though the specific scope, enforcement, and legal status of these laws varies significantly. Understanding how many states is it illegal to boycott Israel requires knowing what these laws actually do, and who they actually apply to.

Here’s the part most people miss: the vast majority of these laws do not make it a crime for a private citizen to personally boycott Israeli goods. They primarily restrict government contractors and public employees from participating in boycotts as a condition of receiving government contracts or employment.

Several of these laws have been challenged in court on First Amendment grounds, with some being struck down entirely and others surviving in modified form.

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This guide breaks down every angle, from which states have passed laws to what the penalties look like, who is actually affected, and the current legal status of each major challenge.

How Many States Is It Illegal to Boycott Israel

As of 2026, approximately 35 states have enacted some form of anti-BDS law targeting boycotts of Israel, making this one of the most widespread state-level legislative responses to a political movement in recent US history.

The exact count depends on how you define “illegal.” Most of these laws don’t create criminal offenses. Instead, they restrict the use of public funds, condition government contracts on anti-boycott certifications, or prohibit state investment funds from investing in companies that participate in BDS activity.

A more accurate framing: in roughly 35 states, government contractors and public employees may be prohibited from boycotting Israel as a condition of their government relationship. Private individuals making personal purchasing decisions are generally not the target of these laws.

The number has grown steadily since 2015, when the first wave of state anti-BDS bills began passing. The pace of new legislation accelerated after 2023, with several additional states enacting or strengthening their anti-boycott provisions.

Quick Fact: The first US state to pass anti-BDS legislation was Illinois in 2015. Within five years, over 30 states had followed with their own versions of anti-boycott laws targeting Israel.

Is Boycotting Israel Illegal in the US

Boycotting Israel is not a federal crime in the United States. No federal criminal statute makes it illegal for a private American citizen to choose not to purchase Israeli products or to publicly advocate for a boycott of Israel.

At the state level, the answer is more complicated. State anti-BDS laws restrict certain conduct in specific contexts. They do not create a general criminal prohibition on boycotting Israel for private individuals.

The conduct these laws restrict includes:

• Government contractors signing agreements that include anti-boycott certifications
• State investment funds being prohibited from investing in companies that boycott Israel
• Public employees being restricted from using government resources to promote boycotts
• State and local governments being prohibited from contracting with companies that boycott Israel

What these laws do not restrict:

• A private citizen choosing not to buy Israeli products
• A private citizen publicly stating they support the BDS movement
• A private company (with no government contracts) choosing not to do business with Israeli firms
• Individual speech, protest, or political advocacy about Israel

The distinction matters enormously. Framing these laws as making “boycotting Israel illegal” for everyone is inaccurate. They create conditions on government relationships, not blanket prohibitions on political expression.

Anti-BDS Laws by State

Anti-BDS laws by state range from narrow investment restrictions to broad contractor certification requirements. The structure of each state’s law determines who is affected and what consequences follow from non-compliance.

States with contractor certification requirements typically require any company seeking a state contract above a specified dollar threshold to certify in writing that they do not and will not boycott Israel during the contract term.

Texas Government Code Section 2270 applies to companies with 10 or more employees and government contracts worth $100,000 or more. Georgia’s law has a similar structure, applying to contracts over $1,000.

States With Anti-Boycott Israel Laws

States with anti-boycott Israel laws as of 2026 span every region of the country and both political parties, though the legislation has been more common in Republican-controlled legislatures. The geographic spread indicates the broad legislative consensus that formed around these laws after 2015.

States with enacted anti-BDS legislation include:

• South: Texas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Louisiana, Kentucky, Virginia
• Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota
• West: Arizona (enjoined), Colorado, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Montana
• Northeast: New York (executive order-based), New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Rhode Island, Connecticut

Several states used executive orders rather than legislation. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 2016 executive order directed state agencies to divest from entities that participate in BDS. This approach avoids some of the First Amendment complications that attach to legislative mandates.

Quick Fact: New York’s executive order approach was notable because it achieved similar policy goals to contractor certification laws without creating the compelled speech problem that courts have used to strike down some legislative versions.

The laws differ in their scope. Some apply only to investment decisions by state pension funds. Others apply to procurement contracts. A smaller number attempt to reach public employees more broadly, and those provisions have faced the most severe constitutional scrutiny.

What Does Anti-BDS Law Actually Ban

Anti-BDS laws ban specific conduct in the context of government relationships, not political speech or personal consumer choices. The actual prohibition in most state laws is narrower than most people assume from news coverage.

The specific conduct these laws target:

• Contractor certification: Requiring businesses to sign a statement certifying they do not boycott Israel as a condition of receiving a state or local government contract
• Investment restrictions: Prohibiting state pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, or public retirement systems from investing in companies that have adopted a formal boycott of Israel
• Government procurement: Prohibiting state agencies from purchasing goods or services from companies that officially boycott Israel
• Divestment requirements: Requiring state investment funds to divest from companies on BDS-related lists

What most of these laws explicitly do not ban:

• Personal consumer choices by private individuals
• Private company policies about their own commercial relationships
• Political speech, protest, or advocacy related to Israel or Palestine
• Academic or cultural boycotts by private institutions

The line between commercial conduct and protected speech is exactly where courts have drawn the constitutional battle lines. Laws that require a contractor to certify their political views as a condition of doing business with the government have been found by multiple courts to raise serious First Amendment problems.

Key Takeaway: Anti-BDS laws primarily restrict government contractors and state investment funds, not private citizens. Approximately 35 states have some form of these laws, but they do not create criminal prohibitions on individual boycott activity.

Is It Illegal to Boycott Israel as a Private Citizen

No, it is not illegal for a private citizen to personally boycott Israel or Israeli products in any US state. No state has enacted a law that criminalizes or penalizes an individual’s personal decision not to purchase goods from Israel or to advocate for others to do the same.

The confusion arises from how these laws are reported. When a headline says “Texas makes it illegal to boycott Israel,” the accurate version is “Texas requires government contractors to certify they don’t boycott Israel.” Those are very different things.

A private citizen can legally:

• Refuse to buy products made in Israel
• Post on social media urging others to boycott Israeli products
• Participate in BDS organizing and advocacy
• Ask friends and family to consider the BDS movement
• Advocate for their employer (a private company) to adopt BDS-related policies

A private citizen working as a government contractor or public employee may face different rules depending on their state. Even then, the consequence is typically loss of the contract or contract ineligibility, not criminal prosecution.

The Supreme Court’s protection of political boycotts as expressive conduct, established in NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co. (1982), remains the controlling precedent. That case held that a politically motivated boycott is protected First Amendment activity. No state anti-BDS law has successfully overridden that protection for private individual conduct.

BDS Law Penalties

BDS law penalties are almost exclusively civil and commercial in nature, not criminal. No US state has enacted a law that sends individuals to jail or prison for boycotting Israel. The penalties operate through contract and procurement mechanisms.

The most common penalty structures:

Texas Government Code Section 2270.002 specifies that a governmental entity may not enter a contract with a company for goods or services unless the contract contains a written verification that the company does not boycott Israel and will not do so during the contract term.

False certification carries the standard consequences for any false statement on a government contract, which can include contract fraud claims, civil penalties, and potential debarment from future contracting.

The financial impact of these laws on affected contractors can be substantial. For a company that relies heavily on Texas or Florida state contracts, certification requirements effectively make BDS compliance a commercial impossibility.

BDS Boycott Legal Consequences

The legal consequences of participating in BDS activity depend entirely on your relationship with government entities. For private citizens with no government contracts, the legal consequences are essentially zero. For government contractors, the consequences are real and commercially significant.

Contractors who refuse to sign anti-boycott certifications face:

• Contract rejection: The state simply won’t award them the contract
• Existing contract termination: Some laws allow termination of active contracts
• Blacklisting from future bids: Refusal to certify can result in being ineligible for future contracts during the period of non-compliance

For public employees, the consequences vary more by state. Some states have attempted to restrict public employees from using government time or resources to promote BDS. Those provisions have been among the most legally contested.

The practical reality for most Americans: the BDS boycott legal consequences in daily life are zero. If you’re a plumber who never bids for state contracts, a teacher at a private school, or a consumer making grocery store choices, no current anti-BDS law in any state creates any legal exposure for you.

The consequences become real when you’re bidding for government work. A construction company bidding for a $2 million Texas state facilities contract must certify its non-participation in Israel boycotts. Refusing to certify means losing the contract. Certifying falsely creates fraud exposure.

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Can You Be Fired for Boycotting Israel

A government employee can potentially face employment consequences for boycotting Israel in states where anti-BDS laws extend to public employment, but courts have limited how far these restrictions can go. Private employees face no legal risk from boycotting Israel.

The most contentious cases have involved public school teachers, state university employees, and other government workers. Several states attempted to require public employees to certify their personal non-participation in BDS as a condition of employment or contract renewal.

The Bahia Amawi case in Texas (2018) became the most publicized example. Amawi, a speech therapist working on a contract with a Texas school district, refused to sign an anti-boycott certification and lost her contract. Her case drew national attention and was eventually settled, with the Texas law amended to clarify it applied to companies, not individual contractors.

Key rulings on public employee BDS restrictions:

Private sector employees have no legal protection issue here. No law restricts private employers from what political positions their employees hold, and no law exposes private employees to any penalty for personal boycott activity.

Key Takeaway: BDS law consequences are commercial, not criminal. Government contractors who refuse to certify lose their contracts. Private citizens, private employees, and private companies with no government relationships face zero legal consequences from any current state anti-BDS law.

Israel Boycott Law Government Contractors

Israel boycott law as it applies to government contractors is the core practical effect of anti-BDS legislation in the United States. The contractor certification requirement is the mechanism that has the most real-world impact.

Here’s how the contractor certification system works in practice:

1. A company submits a bid for a state government contract
2. The bid documents include an anti-boycott certification form
3. The company must sign, certifying it does not boycott Israel and will not do so during the contract
4. Refusing to sign results in disqualification from the contract
5. Signing and then violating the certification creates false statement liability

The contract value thresholds that trigger the requirement vary by state:

Small businesses below these thresholds are typically exempt from the certification requirement even in states with active anti-BDS laws. A sole proprietor or very small company doing minimal government business often falls below the trigger.

The practical effect is significant for mid-size and large contractors in affected states. A technology company, construction firm, or professional services provider that regularly bids for state contracts in Texas, Georgia, or Florida must factor anti-BDS certification requirements into their compliance operations.

Israel Boycott Certification Requirement

The Israel boycott certification requirement is the specific legal mechanism that most state anti-BDS laws use to enforce their provisions. It’s a written statement that contractors must sign, affirming they do not participate in any boycott of Israel and will not do so during the contract term.

The certification is typically embedded in the standard contract language that bidders must accept. Refusing to sign means the bid is rejected. Signing and then participating in a BDS-related action could constitute a material breach of contract or a false certification.

What “boycotting Israel” means under these certifications varies by law. Texas Government Code Section 808.001 defines it as refusing to deal with, terminating business activities with, or otherwise taking any action intended to penalize, inflict economic harm on, or limit commercial relations with Israel, or with a person or entity doing business in Israel or in an Israeli-controlled territory.

That definition is notably broad. It could theoretically encompass a company that declines to do business with Israeli vendors for any stated political reason. Courts have parsed these definitions carefully in challenges.

The certification does not require a company to affirmatively do business with Israeli entities. It only prohibits deliberately avoiding Israeli entities for political reasons. A company that simply has no Israeli business relationships and no policy about Israeli business is not in violation.

Quick Fact: Arkansas’s anti-BDS law was challenged in the 8th Circuit in the Arkansas Times v. Waldrip case. In 2021, the 8th Circuit upheld the Arkansas law, finding that the certification requirement regulated commercial conduct rather than protected speech. This created a direct circuit split with the 9th Circuit’s ruling striking down Arizona’s similar law.

Which States Have Anti-BDS Legislation

As of 2026, the states with enacted anti-BDS legislation represent a cross-regional majority of US states. The list has grown substantially since the first laws passed in 2015 and 2016.

States with confirmed anti-BDS laws as of 2026:

States without anti-BDS legislation as of 2026 include California, Oregon, Washington, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, Hawaii, and several others where legislative efforts have stalled or not been introduced.

New York has used executive orders rather than legislation, which gives it a unique legal posture. The executive order approach has generally avoided the First Amendment certification problems because it directs state agency conduct without compelling private speech.

The legislative trend has continued moving in the direction of more states adopting some form of anti-BDS law, though court decisions striking down the most aggressive versions have influenced how newer laws are drafted.

States Where Anti-BDS Laws Were Struck Down

Several state anti-BDS laws have been partially or fully struck down by federal courts on First Amendment grounds. Understanding which laws are currently enjoined or modified is important for anyone trying to understand the actual legal landscape in 2026.

The 8th Circuit and 9th Circuit have issued conflicting rulings on whether anti-BDS contractor certification requirements violate the First Amendment. The 9th Circuit’s Jordahl decision found Arizona’s law unconstitutionally compelled speech. The 8th Circuit’s Arkansas Times decision reached the opposite conclusion.

This circuit split is significant. It means the same type of law is constitutional in Arkansas (8th Circuit) but unconstitutional in Arizona (9th Circuit). The Supreme Court had not resolved this split as of 2026, leaving the constitutional status of these laws unsettled in much of the country.

Laws in states within the 9th Circuit (Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho, Alaska, Hawaii) face more serious First Amendment exposure based on the Jordahl precedent. Laws in states within the 8th Circuit (Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota) have stronger legal footing based on the Arkansas Times decision.

Anti-BDS Law First Amendment

The central legal controversy around anti-BDS laws is whether they violate the First Amendment by compelling speech or punishing protected political expression. This is not a settled question in US constitutional law as of 2026.

The First Amendment argument against anti-BDS laws rests on two foundations:

• Political boycotts are protected speech: NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co. (1982) established that boycotts organized to protest government policy are protected First Amendment activity.
• Compelled speech doctrine: The government generally cannot force individuals to affirm beliefs they don’t hold. Wooley v. Maynard (1977) and Barnette v. West Virginia (1943) establish that principle.

Anti-BDS laws require contractors to certify a political position (non-participation in a boycott) as a condition of receiving government business. Critics argue this is compelled political speech.

The counter-argument, accepted by the 8th Circuit in Arkansas Times:

• The certification requirement regulates commercial conduct, not political speech
• The government has broad authority to set conditions on its own procurement contracts
• A company’s commercial decision to boycott Israel is not the same as the political speech the First Amendment protects

The unresolved circuit split means the First Amendment status of these laws remains live and contested in 2026.

Key Takeaway: Anti-BDS laws face genuine First Amendment challenges based on their compelled speech elements. The 9th and 8th Circuits have issued conflicting rulings, and the Supreme Court had not resolved the split as of 2026, meaning the constitutional status of these laws depends significantly on which federal circuit you’re in.

Anti-BDS Court Rulings

Anti-BDS court rulings have shaped which state laws are currently enforceable and which remain legally vulnerable. The litigation history is the best guide to understanding the real legal landscape in 2026.

The most significant rulings to date:

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Jordahl v. Brnovich (9th Circuit, 2019)
Arizona’s anti-BDS law required contractors to certify non-participation in Israel boycotts. The 9th Circuit ruled the certification requirement unconstitutional as compelled speech under the First Amendment. Arizona’s law was permanently enjoined.

Arkansas Times v. Waldrip (8th Circuit, 2021)
Arkansas’s anti-BDS law was challenged by the Arkansas Times newspaper, which refused to sign a certification to receive advertising revenue from a state college. The 8th Circuit reversed the district court’s ruling and upheld the Arkansas law, finding the certification regulated commercial conduct.

Amawi v. Pflugerville ISD (W.D. Texas, 2019)
A Texas federal district court granted a preliminary injunction against the state law as applied to individual contractors. The case settled after Texas amended its law to clarify its scope applied to companies, not individual contractors.

Koontz v. American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas (10th Circuit, 2022)
Kansas’s anti-BDS certification requirement was challenged. The 10th Circuit’s analysis contributed to the ongoing legal uncertainty, with the case addressing how broadly “boycott” could be defined in contractor certifications.

The overall picture from the case law: contractor certification requirements survive more easily than laws that appear to target individual political expression or require individuals (rather than companies) to certify personal political positions.

Federal Anti-Boycott Israel Law

No federal anti-BDS law has been enacted as of 2026. Federal legislation targeting boycotts of Israel has been introduced multiple times but has not passed Congress.

The most frequently discussed federal proposal is the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, which was introduced in multiple congressional sessions. This bill would have made it a federal crime for Americans to support boycotts called for by international organizations like the United Nations. The bill drew significant civil liberties opposition and stalled each time it was introduced.

The existing federal anti-boycott framework operates differently. The Export Administration Act of 1979 (EAA) and related Commerce Department regulations prohibit US companies from complying with foreign-imposed boycotts of Israel. This is a distinct concept from the anti-BDS laws discussed above.

The EAA anti-boycott provisions are about foreign-imposed boycotts (specifically the Arab League boycott of Israel) affecting US businesses in their export activities. This is not the same as state anti-BDS laws, which address domestically-organized boycotts. Both are worth understanding, but they operate in completely different contexts.

Quick Fact: The Commerce Department’s anti-boycott regulations under 15 CFR 760 require US companies to report requests to participate in foreign-government-sponsored boycotts of Israel. Penalties for violations include fines up to $1 million per violation and criminal penalties for willful violations.

Is the BDS Movement Illegal

The BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement itself is not illegal in the United States. It is a political movement that advocates for economic pressure on Israel through boycotts of Israeli products, divestment from Israeli companies, and sanctions against Israel. As a form of political advocacy, it is protected First Amendment activity.

No federal law criminalizes membership in, support for, or advocacy of the BDS movement. No state has successfully enacted a law that makes the BDS movement itself illegal for private individuals.

What states have done is restrict how BDS-related conduct interfaces with government contracting and investment. That’s a meaningful restriction, but it’s not the same as making a political movement illegal.

The BDS movement can legally:

• Organize and advocate for boycotts
• Publish materials calling for boycotts of Israeli products
• Hold rallies, demonstrations, and educational events
• Encourage private individuals and companies to adopt BDS policies
• Pressure universities, pension funds, and private companies to divest

Where BDS activity runs into legal restrictions:

• Companies that adopt formal BDS policies may be disqualified from government contracts in anti-BDS states
• State pension funds in some states are prohibited from investing in companies that formally boycott Israel
• Individual contractors in some states must certify non-participation in BDS as a condition of government work

The movement as a political and advocacy organization operates lawfully throughout the United States.

Can States Ban Boycotts of Foreign Countries

States can place conditions on government contracts that touch on how contractors engage with foreign countries, but they cannot ban the act of boycotting a foreign country as a form of political expression by private individuals. This is where the constitutional line has been drawn by the courts that have considered these cases.

The legal framework that governs this question involves three overlapping bodies of law:

• First Amendment: Protects political speech and expression, including organized boycotts
• Contract law: Gives governments broad authority to set conditions on their own procurement
• Preemption doctrine: Federal law may preempt state laws that regulate international trade or foreign relations in ways that conflict with federal policy

Courts have generally allowed states to set conditions on their own procurement decisions, including requiring contractors to certify non-participation in boycotts. The 8th Circuit in Arkansas Times took this approach, treating the certification as a commercial procurement condition rather than a restriction on speech.

Courts have generally not allowed states to restrict individual private citizens from boycotting foreign countries as political expression. The 9th Circuit in Jordahl took the position that requiring an individual to certify their political views as a condition of any government benefit crosses the First Amendment line.

The practical effect of where this constitutional line falls: states can refuse to do business with companies that boycott Israel, but they cannot make it a crime for a private person to participate in such a boycott. That distinction defines the current state of the law in 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many US states have laws against boycotting Israel?

Approximately 35 states have enacted some form of anti-BDS legislation as of 2026.
The specific number varies depending on how you count executive orders versus enacted statutes and whether you count laws that have been enjoined by courts.
Not all of these laws are currently enforceable; some have been struck down or modified following court challenges.
The most accurate answer is that roughly 28 to 30 states have currently enforceable restrictions on government contractors related to Israel boycotts.

Does the anti-BDS law apply to regular citizens or just government contractors?

Anti-BDS laws primarily apply to government contractors, not private citizens making personal purchasing decisions.
A private individual who boycotts Israeli products, supports BDS on social media, or advocates for the movement faces no legal penalty under any current state or federal law.
The laws restrict companies and individuals who seek state government contracts, requiring them to certify non-participation in Israel boycotts as a condition of those contracts.
Private citizens with no government contracting relationship are unaffected by these laws.

Can you lose a government contract for boycotting Israel?

Yes, in approximately 28 to 30 states, a company can be disqualified from state government contracts if it refuses to sign an anti-boycott certification or if it has a formal policy of boycotting Israel.
The contract thresholds that trigger the requirement vary by state; Texas requires certification for contracts over $100,000 with companies of 10 or more employees.
Refusing to certify means losing the contract; signing falsely creates potential fraud liability.
Courts have upheld contractor certification requirements in the 8th Circuit and struck them down in the 9th Circuit, creating a geographic split in which states can enforce these requirements.

Have any anti-BDS laws been ruled unconstitutional?

Yes, several anti-BDS laws have been struck down or enjoined by federal courts.
The 9th Circuit ruled in Jordahl v. Brnovich (2019) that Arizona’s contractor certification requirement was unconstitutional compelled speech under the First Amendment.
The 8th Circuit reached the opposite conclusion in Arkansas Times v. Waldrip (2021), upholding Arkansas’s similar law.
The Supreme Court had not resolved this circuit split as of 2026, meaning the constitutional status of these laws remains unsettled.

Is the BDS movement itself illegal in the United States?

No, the BDS movement is not illegal in the United States.
It is a political movement protected by the First Amendment as a form of political expression and organized advocacy.
No federal law and no state law makes membership in, support for, or advocacy of the BDS movement a crime for private individuals.
What some states restrict is the participation of government contractors in BDS-related commercial conduct as a condition of receiving state contracts, which is a different and narrower restriction.

The Law Here Is Evolving Fast

The legal status of anti-BDS laws is one of the most actively litigated areas of state contract and First Amendment law in the country. The rules that apply today may shift if the Supreme Court takes up the circuit split between the 8th and 9th Circuits.

Bookmark this guide and revisit it as new court decisions come down. If you’re a government contractor in an anti-BDS state, knowing your certification obligations is the most practical step you can take right now.

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