Cape News

In a bipartisan vote, the House of Representatives passed the Anti-BDS Labeling Act (H.R. 5179), codifying a Trump-era trade rule clarifying labeling requirements for goods imported from Israel, the Gaza Strip, or the West Bank. In 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) updated its country of origin labeling guidance to accurately reflect whether an item originated in a region of the West Bank under Israel’s jurisdiction, a region of the West Bank independent of Israel, or Hamas-controlled Gaza.

Public reports from earlier this year indicated that the Harris-Biden Administration was considering at least partially rescinding the 2020 labeling rules to influence Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government over the war between Israel and Hamas. If enacted into law, the bill would block any such politically motivated modification and show continued U.S. support for its strongest ally and largest trading partner in the Middle East. The bill was approved by the Ways and Means Committee earlier this year with solely Republican votes.

In debate on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) explained how the 2020 labeling reforms were part of the Trump Administration’s unwavering support for Israel and empowered Americans with knowledge to support Israel:

“American families should have this information in order to buy products that support Israel’s economy – particularly in a time of war. Conversely, people should know if an item comes from a region controlled by terrorists that kidnapped and killed their fellow Americans.

“Public reports earlier this year indicated that the Biden-Harris Administration considered reversing this policy. Once again, Democrats are putting the demands of radical progressives ahead of our best ally and our largest trading partner in the Middle East.”

The Anti-BDS Labeling Act (H.R. 5179) codifies a Trump-era rule clarifying country-of-origin labeling for imported goods originating from Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza.

On December 1, 2020, the Department of State issued new guidance advising that (1) Israel continues to exercise relevant authority in areas of the West Bank; and (2) Gaza and the West Bank are politically and administratively separate.

Following this new guidance, CBP issued its notice that goods produced in territorial areas where Israel continues to exercise relevant authorities must be marked as “Israel,” “Product of Israel,” or “Made in Israel.”

CBP’s notice further clarified that goods must be marked appropriately as “Product of West Bank,” “Product of Gaza,” or words with similar meaning.

Finally, CBP’s notice stated that goods must not be marked “West Bank/Gaza,” “West Bank/Gaza Strip,” “West Bank and Gaza,” or words with similar meaning.

The bill codifies this 2020 notice titled "Country of Origin Marking of Products from The West Bank And Gaza" (85 Fed. Reg. 83984) and prohibits using federal funds to reverse or alter it.