United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2013

H.R.938
Introduced: 
March 4, 2013
113
First
March 5, 2014
Passed in House

Building on the U.S.-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 (see *S. 2165 of 3/6/12), this bill would reaffirm and strengthen the relationship between Israel and the U.S. in a variety of ways.

Provisions include, inter alia, admitting Israel into the visa waiver program after it satisfies admission requirements (see H.R. 300 of 1/15/13 for more on the program); a non-binding provision urging new efforts on cybersecurity; the transfer of certain obsolete or surplus defense materials to Israel; a 1-year extension on Israeli access to the U.S. war reserves stockpiled in Israel, as well as an expansion of those stockpiles. The bill designates Israel as a ‘major strategic partner’ of the U.S., a title left undefined, and urges the president to provide assistance for the enhancement of U.S.-Israel cooperative missile defense programs. It also includes new authorizations for U.S.-Israel cooperation in a variety of fields, including energy, water, homeland security, and renewable energy. Furthermore, the bill would extend federal grants to cooperative efforts on renewable energy.

Controversy arose over the Senate’s version of this bill because its visa waiver clause stipulated that Israel would be admitted to the visa waiver program only if it fulfilled the program’s requirements and made ‘every reasonable effort, without jeopardizing the security of the State of Israel, to ensure that reciprocal travel privileges are extended to all U.S. citizens.’ Prominent critics of the bill—the Arab American Institute and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee—argued that by allowing for an exception based on security, this bill essentially guaranteed the right of Israeli citizens to enter the U.S. and implicitly endorsed the racial profiling and discrimination to which Arab Americans are subject by Israeli security screenings. The House version only states that it should be U.S. policy to include Israel in the program when it satisfies the admission requirements.

This bill was at the center of efforts by AIPAC lobbyists and it was featured in the ‘legislative agenda’ section of the AIPAC website. J Street also lobbied for this bill, despite its opposition to H.R. 300 of 1/15/13, a bill with nearly identical provisions regarding Israel’s entry into the visa waiver program. At the CUFI annual conference lobbying day, over 4,200 attendees lobbied Capitol Hill in favor of this bill.

In the 1/29/14 Foreign Affairs Cmte. markup session, this bill was amended to include the text of the Israel QME Enhancement Act (H.R. 1992 of 5/15/13) and a provision on defenses against anti-Semitism.

Over a year after it was introduced, this bill passed the House on the last day of the annual AIPAC conference in 3/2014. After key senators compromised on the bill’s visa waiver language, the Senate’s version of the measure gathered more momentum and was eventually signed into law (see S. 462 of 3/5/13 and *S. 2673 of 7/28/14 for more).

355 cosponsors (207R, 148D).

See also: companion measure S. 462 of 3/5/13, S. 266 of 2/7/13, H.R. 300 of 1/15/13, and *S. 2673 of 7/28/14.

Last major action: 3/5/14 Passed in the House by yea/nay vote, 410–1.

Sponsor/Cosponsors:

Rodney Alexander(R-LA)Mark E. Amodei(R-NV)Robert Andrews(D-NJ)Michele Marie Bachmann(R-MN)Spencer Bachus(R-AL)Ron Barber(D-AZ)Louis Barletta(R-PA)Andy Barr(R-KY)John Barrow(D-GA)Joyce Beatty(D-OH)Daniel Benishek(R-MI)Kerry Bentivolio(R-MI)Ami Bera(D-CA)Gus Bilirakis(R-FL)Sanford Bishop(D-GA)Rob Bishop(R-UT)Timothy Bishop(D-)Marsha Blackburn(R-TN)Suzanne Bonamici(D-OR)Jo Bonner(R-AL)Kevin Brady(R-TX)Robert Brady(D-PA)Bruce Braley(D-IA)Jim Bridenstine(R-OK)Susan Brooks(R-IN)Mo Brooks(R-AL)Paul Jr. Broun(R-GA)Corrine Brown(D-FL)Julia Brownley(D-CA)Vernon Buchanan(R-FL)Larry Bucshon(R-IN)Cheri Bustos(D-IL)Bradley Byrne(R-AL)Ken Calvert(R-CA)John Campbell(R-CA)Shelly Moore Capito(R-WV)Tony Cardenas(D-CA)John Carney(D-DE)John Carter(R-TX)Matt Cartwright(D-PA)Bill Cassidy(R-LA)Kathy Castor(D-FL)Steve Chabot(R-OH)Jason Chaffetz(R-UT)Judy Chu(D-CA)David Cicilline(D-RI)Yvette Clarke(D-)Emanuel Cleaver(D-MO)Howard Coble(R-NC)Mike Coffman(R-CO)Stephen Cohen(D-TN)Tom Cole(R-OK)Doug Collins(R-GA)Chris Collins(R-NY)Mike Conaway(R-TX)Gerry Connolly(D-VA)Paul Cook(R-CA)Jim Cooper(D-TN)Jim Costa(D-CA)Tom Cotton(R-AR)Joe Courtney(D-CT)Kevin Cramer(R-ND)Rick Crawford(R-AR)Ander Crenshaw(R-FL)Joseph Crowley(D-)Henry Cuellar(D-TX)John Culberson(R-TX)Steve Daines(R-MT)Rodney Davis(R-IL)Susan Davis(D-CA)Peter DeFazio(D-OR)Diana DeGette(D-CO)Ron DeSantis(R-FL)Susan DelBene(D-WA)John Delaney(D-MD)Rosa Delauro(D-CT)Jeff Denham(R-CA)Charlie Dent(R-PA)Ted Deutch(D-FL)Lincoln Diaz-Balart(R-FL)Mike Doyle(D-PA)Sean Duffy(R-WI)Jeff Duncan(R-SC)Renee Ellmers(R-NC)Eliot Engel(D-)William Enyart(D-IL)Elizabeth Esty(D-CT)Blake Farenthold(R-TX)Chaka Fattah(D-PA)Steven Fincher(R-TN)Michael Fitzpatrick(R-PA)Chuck Fleischmann(R-TN)John C. Fleming(R-LA)Bill Flores(R-TX)Randy Forbes(R-VA)Bill Foster(D-IL)Virginia Foxx(R-NC)Lois Frankel(D-FL)Trent Franks(R-AZ)Rodney Frelinghuysen(R-NJ)Marcia Fudge(D-OH)Tulsi Gabbard(D-HI)Pete Gallego(D-TX)John Garamendi(D-CA)Joe Garcia(D-FL)Cory Gardner(R-CO)Scott Garrett(R-NJ)Jim Gerlach(R-PA)Bob Gibbs(R-OH)Chris Gibson(R-NY)Phil Gingrey(R-GA)Louis Jr. Gohmert(R-TX)Paul Gosar(R-AZ)Trey Gowdy(R-SC)Kay Granger(R-TX)Sam Graves(R -MO)Tom Graves(R-GA)Alan Grayson(D-FL)Al Green(D-TX)Gene Green(D-TX)Tim Griffin(R-AR)Morgan Griffith(R-VA)Michael Grimm(R-NY)Brett Guthrie(R-)Janice Hahn(D-CA)Colleen Hanabusa(D-HI)Richard Hanna(R-NY)Gregg Harper(R-MS)Andy Harris(R-MD)Vicky Hartzler(R-MO)Alcee Hastings(D-FL)Doc Hastings(R-WA)Joe Heck(R-NV)Dennis Heck(D-WA)Jeb Hensarling(R-TX)Jaime Herrera Beutler(R-WA)Brian Higgins(D-)Jim Himes(D-CT)George Holding(R-NC)Rush Holt(D-NJ)Mike Honda(D-CA)Steven Horsford(D-NV)Richard Hudson(R-NC)Tim Huelskamp(R-KS)Jared Huffman(D-CA)Bill Huizenga(R-MI)Randy Hultgren(R-IL)Duncan Hunter(D-CA)Robert Hurt(R-VA)Steve Israel(D-)Darrell Issa(R-CA)Sheila Jackson-Lee(D-TX)Hakeem Jeffries(D-NY)Lynn Jenkins(R-KS)Bill Johnson(R-OH)Sam Johnson(R-TX)James Jordan(R-OH)David Joyce(R-OH)William Keating(D-MA)Robin L. Kelly(D-IL)Mike Kelly(R-PA)Joseph Kennedy III(D-MA)Dan Kildee(D-MI)Derek Kilmer(D-WA)Ron Kind(D-WI)Steven King(R-IA)Pete King(R-)Jack Kingston(R-GA)Adam Kinzinger(R-IL)Ann Kirkpatrick(D-AZ)John Kline(R-MN)Ann M. Kuster(D-NH)Doug LaMalfa(R-CA)Douglas Lamborn(R-CO)Leonard Lance(R-NJ)Jim Langevin(D-RI)James Lankford(R-OK)Rick Larsen(D-WA)John Larson(D-CT)Tom Latham(R-IA)Robert Latta(R-OH)Sander Levin(D-MI)John Lewis(D-GA)Dan Lipinski(D-IL)Frank Lobiondo(R-NJ)David Loebsack(D-IA)Billy Long(R-MO)Alan Lowenthal(D-CA)Nita Lowey(D-)Blaine Luetkemeyer(R-MO)Ben R. Lujan(D-NM)Michelle Lujan Grisham(D-NM)Cynthia Lummis(R-WY)Dan Maffei(D-NY)Carolyn Maloney(D-)Sean Patrick Maloney(D-NY)Kenny Ewell Marchant(R-TX)Tom Marino(R-PA)Edward Markey(D-MA)Jim Matheson(D-UT)Doris Matsui(D-CA)Carolyn McCarthy(D-)Michael McCaul(R-TX)Tom McClintock(R-CA)Patrick McHenry(R-NC)Mike McIntyre(D-NC)Howard McKeon(R-CA)David McKinley(R-WV)Gloria Negrete McLeod(D-CA)Cathy McMorris Rodgers(R-WA)Jerry McNerney(D-CA)Mark Meadows(R-NC)Patrick Meehan(R-PA)Gregory Meeks(D-)Grace Meng(D-NY)Luke Messer(R-IN)John Mica(R-FL)Mike Michaud(D-ME)Candice Miller(R-MI)Jeff Miller(R-FL)Gary Miller(R-CA)Markwayne Mullin(R-OK)Mick Mulvaney(R-SC)Tim Murphy(R-PA)Patrick Murphy(D-PA)Jerrold Nadler(D-NY)Richard Neal(D-MA)Randy Neugebauer(R-TX)Kristi Noem(R-SD)Rick Nolan(D-MN)Eleanor Holmes Norton(D-DC)Richard Nugent(R-FL)Alan Nunnelee(R-MS)Pete Olson(R-TX)Bill Owens(D-NY)Steven Palazzo(R-MS)Frank Pallone Jr(D-NJ)Bill Pascrell Jr(D-NJ)Erik Paulsen(R-MN)Donald Payne(D-NJ)Steve Pearce(R-NM)Edwin Perlmutter(D-CO)Scott Perry(R-PA)Scott Peters(D-CA)Gary Peters(D-MI)Collin Peterson(D-MN)Tom Petri(R -WI)Robert Pittenger(R-NC)Joe Pitts(R-PA)Mark Pocan(D-WI)Ted Poe(R-TX)Jared Polis(D-CO)Mike Pompeo(R-KS)Bill Posey(R-FL)Tom Price(R-GA)David Price(D-NC)Mike Quigley(D-IL)Trey Radel(R-FL)Nick Rahall(D-WV)Charles Rangel(D-)Tom Reed(R-NY)Dave Reichert(R-WA)James Renacci(R-OH)Reid Ribble(R-WI)Tom Rice(R-SC)Cedric Richmond(D-LA)Scott Rigell(R-VA)Martha Roby(R-AL)David "Phil" Roe(R-TN)Mike D Rogers(R-AL)Dana Rohrabacher(R-CA)Todd Rokita(R-IN)Tom Rooney(R-FL)Peter Roskam(R-IL)Dennis Ross(R-FL)Keith Rothfus(R-PA)Ed Royce(R-CA)Raul Ruiz(D-CA)Jon Runyan(R-NJ)Tim Ryan(D-OH)Paul Ryan(R-WI)Matt Salmon(R-AZ)Linda Sanchez(D-CA)Loretta Sanchez(D-CA)John Sarbanes(D-MD)Stephen Joseph Scalise(R-LA)Jan Schakowsky(D-IL)Adam Schiff(D-CA)Brad Schneider(D-IL)Aaron Schock(R-IL)Kurt Schrader(D-OR)Allyson Schwartz(D-PA)David Schweikert(R-AZ)David Scott(D-GA)Robert Scott(D-VA)Austin Scott(R-SC)James Jr Sensenbrenner(R-WI)Pete Sessions(R-TX)Terri Sewell(D-AL)Brad Sherman(D-CA)John Shimkus(R-IL)Bill Shuster(R-PA)Mike Simpson(R-ID)Kyrsten Sinema(D-AZ)Albio Sires(D-NJ)Louise McIntosh Slaughter(D-)Jason Smith(R-MO)Chris Smith(R-NJ)Adam Smith(D-WA)Lamar Smith(R-TX)Steve Southerland(R-FL)Jackie Speier(D-CA)Chris Stewart(R-UT)Steve Stivers(R-OH)Steve Stockman(R-TX)Marlin Stutzman(R-IN)Eric Swalwell(D-CA)Mark Takano(D-CA)Lee Terry(R-NE)Mike Thompson(D-CA)Mac Thornberry(R-TX)Patrick Tiberi(R-OH)Scott Tipton(R-CO)Dina Titus(D-NV)Paul Tonko(D-NY)Fred Upton(R-MI)David Valadao(R-CA)Chris Van Hollen(D-MD)Juan Vargas(D-CA)Marc Veasey(D-TX)Filemon Vela Jr.(D-TX)Nydia Velazquez(D-)Ann Wagner(R-MO)Tim Walberg(R-MI)Greg Walden(R -OR)Jackie Walorski(R-IN)Timothy Walz(D-MN)Debbie Wasserman-Shultz(D-FL)Henry Waxman(D-CA)Randy K. Weber(R-TX)Daniel Webster(R-FL)Brad Wenstrup(R-OH)Lynn Westmoreland(R-GA)Roger Williams(R-TX)Frederica Wilson(D-FL)Joe Wilson(R-SC)Robert Wittman(R-VA)Frank Wolf(R-VA)Steve Womack(R-AR)Rob Woodall(R-GA)Kevin Yoder(R-KS)Ted Yoho(R-FL)Todd Young(R-IN)C W Bill Young(R-FL)Don Young(R-AK)

More info

For more information, Click Here to visit this measure’s page at congress.gov.