Two New Hampshire political leaders have leant their support to the passage of a statewide anti-BDS bill.
House Bill 339, which was introduced in the state legislature in January, would prohibit state funds from being used to contract with or invest in companies supporting the boycott movement against Israel.
Current Rep. James Spillane (R) and former Rep. Paul Berch (D), writing in an op-ed in the Portsmouth Herald, said that the purpose of the legislation is to “conform to the overall non-discrimination policy of the State of New Hampshire" and to "protect our economy from the impact of discriminatory and risky investments.”
Noting that Israel is an important trading partner for their states that “contributes materially to our quality of life,” they noted that the legal measure is needed as BDS seeks to “coerce neutral businesses into joining the hate-driven boycott against their will.”
The legislation, subject to discussion on Wednesday during Executive Departments and Administration Committee hearings, will promote the safe investment of state funds in a non-discriminatory manner, according to Spillane and Berch, which fulfills the state’s moral obligation under the law.
They highlighted the essential nature of the stat’e trade relationship with Israel, explaining that since 1996, New Hampshire’s exports to Israel have surpassed $1.1 billion. In 2021, the state exported $110 million in manufactured goods to the Jewish State, making Israel New Hampshire’s 14th largest trading partner, and representing thousands of local jobs.
“We are not blazing new ground here. New Hampshire will be the 36th state to pass such a law, and these laws have been upheld in every court challenge they have faced,” they wrote.
If the bill passes, “Business owners [will] remain free to say whatever they want about Israel. They [will] also remain free to boycott if they want, but in that case the state will exercise its own right to decline to spend taxpayer money in business with them.”
Spillane and Berch also slammed opponents of the bill, accusing them of an attempt to “exploit latent antisemitism by accusing this bill of requiring a ‘loyalty oath’ to Israel.”