RELEASE: House Passes Gottheimer, Foxx Bipartisan Bill to Hold Higher Education Accountable for Hate-Driven BDS Activity that Targets Jewish Students and Professors

Resources / Press Share on RELEASE: House Passes Gottheimer, Foxx Bipartisan Bill to Hold Higher Education Accountable for Hate-Driven BDS Activity that Targets Jewish Students and Professors BDS Attacks Academic Freedom; Legislation Protects Free Speech Sep 03, 2026 Press Above: Gottheimer speaks on the House floor in favor of the Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, September 3, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act , authored by U.S. Representatives Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) and Virginia Foxx (NC-5), by a vote of 237-169. The legislation prohibits colleges and universities from receiving federal student aid if they engage in commercial and academic boycotts promoted by the antisemitic and hate-fueled boycott-divest-sanction (BDS) movement. The bill now heads to the U.S. Senate. See full bill text here . See Gottheimer’s remarks on the house floor here . “No student, no professor should be shut out of research, study abroad opportunities, or academic partnerships, or feel unwelcome in the classroom because of where they’re from or what religion they practice. Yet that’s exactly what the boycott-divest-sanction movement seeks to do — targeting one country and one religion: Israel and Judaism,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5). “My bipartisan bill with Congresswoman Foxx is narrow and targeted — it doesn’t touch anyone’s speech, protest, or academic debate. It simply says that if your university takes federal taxpayer dollars, it can’t discriminate against academic partnerships or investments with one country. That’s it. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bipartisan bill.” “The antisemitic rot that has corroded college campuses must be eradicated – enough is enough. The safety and security of Jewish students, faculty, and staff should never be threatened under any circumstances. Today, the House sent a clear message: if an institution of higher education chooses to capitulate to the caustic BDS movement, there will be consequences – starting with this bipartisan legislation,” said Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (NC-5). The Protect Economic and Academic Freedom Act will: Require colleges and universities to certify that the institution is not engaging in a non-expressive commercial boycott of Israel, or forgo the ability to receive federal student aid. Define “non-expressive commercial boycott of Israel” to mean a commercial action (including engaging in refusals to deal with Israel and terminating business activities) intended to limit commercial relations with Israel, or persons or entities conducting business in Israel or Israeli-controlled institutions, and is not based on a valid business reason. Direct the Department of Education to make publicly available a list of all institutions that do not certify. Require colleges and universities that are recipients of International Education Programs (Title VI) funding to not allow academic boycotts, but instead engage in academic exchange reciprocity. Congressman Gottheimer has long been a leading voice in Congress against antisemitism. As a member of the House Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Antisemitism, he helped lead the bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act to hold campuses accountable for antisemitic harassment, authored the HEAL Act to strengthen Holocaust education, and has helped secure millions in Nonprofit Security Grants to protect synagogues and Jewish institutions across NJ-5. He will keep fighting to root out antisemitism — on college campuses and everywhere else — and to keep Jewish families and communities safe. ### Share on