US House bill would strip universities of federal funds over Israel boycotts

WASHINGTON, United States — WASHINGTON — A bipartisan federal bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would penalize universities that participate in boycotts or economic campaigns against Israel. H.R. 4795, titled the "Economic and Academic Freedom Protection Act," was introduced by Representative Virginia Foxx, a Republican from North Carolina who chairs the Education and the Workforce Committee, with support from members of both parties. The legislation would amend the 1965 Higher Education Act by cutting off federal funding and grants to universities that engage in commercial or economic boycotts of Israel. It would require university administrators to certify in writing that they are not restricting academic programs or student exchange quotas with Israel, and would authorize federal sanctions on foundation boards that carry out divestment demands related to Israeli-linked companies. The bill was placed on the official calendar under H. Res. 1499, adopted on August 31, 2026. It is scheduled for consideration by the full House in early September 2026, with one hour of debate evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats under the Education and the Workforce Committee. The measure will be voted on directly using Rules Committee Print 119-39, with no further amendments permitted. The proposal comes amid a wave of pro-Palestinian student protests that began at Columbia University in April 2024 during Israel's offensive in Gaza and spread to dozens of U.S. universities, alongside demands for institutions to divest from Israeli-linked companies.