Campaign Challenges Arizona Israel Anti-Boycott Law Through First Amendment Lawsuit

Coalition Launches Campaign to Repeal HB 2617

A new campaign has launched to challenge Arizona's anti-boycott Israel law through First Amendment legal challenges and public education efforts.

The Right to Dissent campaign is targeting House Bill 2617, legislation signed by Gov. Doug Ducey in 2016 that requires government contractors to certify they are not boycotting Israel. The campaign plans to build toward a citizen initiative to repeal the law.

"This is not a vanity project. We will work tirelessly to educate the public and the legislators at all levels about the constitutional laws that suppress free speech in Arizona," said Eva Putzova, campaign lead and former Flagstaff city councilmember.

The coalition behind the campaign includes Sen. Analise Ortiz, D-Phoenix, Palestinian business leaders, Jewish Voice for Peace, and various advocacy groups. Members of the coalition include Martín Quezada, former lawmaker and attorney and civil rights director for Council on American-Islamic Relations Arizona, Bobby Nichols, a Democrat running for Tempe City Council, and Kai Newkirk, a Democrat challenging Rep. Greg Stanton in Congressional District 4.

Legal Challenges Continue

The law faces ongoing legal challenges. In 2016, Gov. Doug Ducey signed House Bill 2617, prohibiting public entities from entering into any contract with a company without a certification stating the business is not currently engaged in and agrees not to engage in a boycott of Israel.

In 2017, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona filed a lawsuit on behalf of Mikkel Jordahl, an attorney contracting with the Coconino County Jail District to provide public legal services to incarcerated people. Jordahl had personally boycotted consumer goods and services by businesses supporting Israel and signed the boycott admonition, fearing a loss of $18,000 in yearly income from the contract.

In court, Jordahl claimed the state law cornered him into choosing between his beliefs and a substantial loss of income. He asserted violations of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, claiming restriction on political expression, discrimination based on ideological beliefs and compelled speech.

A federal judge agreed to block the law on First Amendment grounds. The state appealed to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, but before any ruling, the Legislature amended the law to only apply to for-profit companies with more than ten employees on contracts exceeding $100,000.

The change made it so Jordahl no longer had standing to challenge the law, and judges dismissed the case.

In 2022, the Legislature amended the law once more to require contractors to sign the anti-boycott statement at state universities, community colleges and employee retirement funds.

Thabet Khalidi, an attorney and organizer with the Right to Dissent campaign, said with the law still in effect, businesses are still left to choose between its values and its livelihood.

Campaign Strategy

The Right to Dissent campaign aims to start the path toward repeal with public education, then lobbying efforts in the state house, a search for plaintiffs to lodge a lawsuit and eventually, a voter initiative.

When answering why the campaign was challenging the now decade-old law, Syed Mahmud Nasir Raza, a supporter of the campaign and organizer with Progressive Actions, said, "The most important reason, I think, is there's been a genocide in Gaza. That's why we are all here today. It's continuing today with the active support and complicity and partnership of the United States government."

He continued, "This must end, and one of the best ways to end it is through boycott."

Khalidi added that the aim of the campaign extends far beyond the issue of Israel.

"We're not asking for the state to agree with any boycott," Khalidi said. "We are asking the state to stop being a political enforcer."

Legislative Opposition

Attempts at repeal in the Legislature are likely to hit a wall, though.

In a text, Senate President Warren Petersen said "it may come as no surprise that we support Israel." And when asked whether legislative leadership would entertain any attempts to repeal the law, Andrew Wilder, a spokesperson for House Republicans, said "no."

The campaign plans to focus on public engagement and legal challenges before attempting legislative repeal. Putzova noted a ballot measure will be the final step, with efforts first put toward campaigns, legal attempts and lobbying state lawmakers.

"We can start by repealing the 2016 law," Ortiz said. "My job as a senator is to defend the Constitution, not weaponize state power against people's beliefs that I may or may not agree with. I will work with this coalition until no Arizonan has to choose between their conscience and their ability to do business with their own government."

Past Legal Victories

The original 2018 court ruling held that Arizona's anti-BDS laws were applied to politically motivated actions and therefore did not regulate only commercial speech. The state appealed.

In response to the court's decision, the Legislature scaled back the law so that the certification requirement applied only to companies and only to government contracts worth more than $100,000. This same amendment now applies to the current version of the law.

The ACLU has defended the right to boycott for decades and has filed similar challenges in other states including Kansas and Texas. In Kansas, a federal district court blocked a similar law, holding that the First Amendment protects the right to participate in politically motivated boycotts of Israel.