Assemblymember Marc Levine Comments on Passage of Anti-BDS Legislation

AB 2844 (Bloom) Sent to the Governor with Bipartisan Support from the Legislature

Assemblymember Marc Levine (D-Marin County), vice chair of the Legislative Jewish Caucus, released the following statement on this week’s passage of AB 2844 (Bloom).  This bill seeks to prevent discriminatory boycotts of Israel such as the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.  In doing so, AB 2844 reinforces the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by Governor Jerry Brown and Prime Minister Natanyahu in 2014.

“The BDS movement is rooted in anti-Semitism and this legislation assures that such discrimination will not be rewarded with California tax dollars.  California is not a discriminatory state and we are proud of our relationship with Israel.  That relationship has been formalized by an MOU.  Under this MOU, Israeli engineers and scientists can help California solve some of our most pressing problems, especially in how we address California’s historic drought,” said Assemblymember Levine.  “It only makes sense that California should expect our vendors to honor that formal relationship and not discriminate against Israel.”

AB 2844 provides that if a business chooses to discriminate through a boycott of Israel, California will not contract with that company as a state vendor.  Under the MOU, California is collaborating with Israel on a comprehensive approach toward developing a sustainable water future in California.  Israel also contributes expertise in environmental technology, education, health, agriculture, sustainable energy and clean technologies.

Assemblymember Marc Levine represents the 10th Assembly District which includes Marin and Sonoma Counties. Assemblymember Levine is the Chair of the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee.