Trump admin lifts condition that would withhold disaster aid from states that boycott Israeli companies

The Trump administration has removed language from a FEMA document that would have required the withholding of disaster relief funds from states that boycott Israeli companies.

On Friday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) outlined several conditions for states to receive disaster relief, saying that “recipients must comply with all applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws material to the government’s payment decisions.”

Among the terms and conditions given, FEMA stated that recipients must not engage in a “discriminatory prohibited boycott.”

It defined such a boycott as “refusing to deal, cutting commercial relations, or otherwise limiting commercial relations specifically with Israeli companies or with companies doing business in or with Israel or authorized by, licensed by, or organized under the laws of Israel to do business.”

According to a Reuters report, “the language applied to at least $1.9 billion that states rely on to cover search-and-rescue equipment, emergency manager salaries and backup power systems, among other expenses.”

A subsequent version of the document, however, removed this language.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) denied that any such condition was being imposed, without acknowledging that the condition was indeed included in a document from the official DHS website.

“There is no FEMA requirement tied to Israel in any current NOFO [notice of funding opportunity],” DHS wrote in a post on 𝕏. “No states have lost funding, and no new conditions have been imposed.”

However, the statement also confirmed that the DHS considers the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement to be “antisemitic,” and that enforcement of “anti-discrimination laws and policies” will take this into account.

“DHS will enforce all anti-discrimination laws and policies, including as it relates to the BDS movement, which is expressly grounded in antisemitism,” the statement read.

“Those who engage in racial discrimination should not receive a single dollar of federal funding.”