From: To: Cc: Subject: Date: Fine, Randy Joseph Sabag berkstrom@oksenate.gov; denise.crosswhitehader@okhouse.gov; marilyn.stark@okhouse.gov; ted.alexander@ncleg.net; stephen.owens@house.ks.gov; mary.bentley@arkansashouse.org; admotzen@agudathisrael.org; sandra.e.benen@gsk.com Anti-Semitism Bill Discussed at ALEC Sunday, August 18, 2019 10:52:27 AM It was great to see you at the ALEC conference last week in Austin and to briefly share the work we did in Florida passing HB 741, the strongest anti-Semitism bill ever passed in the United States. A link to a copy of the bill is below, but in effect the bill does two things: 1) takes the State Department definition of anti-Semitism and makes it the Florida definition of anti-Semitism and 2) requires that all antisemitism in our K-20 education system (whether acts by students, administrators or faculty, policies and procedures, club organizations, etc.) be treated identically as how racism is treated. In other words, they duplicate their policies for racism and simply swap out the word anti-Semitism. Students for Justice in Palestine is now treated the same way as the Ku Klux Klan – as they should be. The elegance of the solution is two-fold: 1) we avoid debate over “what is anti-Semitism” by relying on the world’s most recognized definition. 2) We leverage decades of legal precedent in limiting racist speech, groups on campus, acts by faculty and administrators, etc. and simply apply it to antiSemitism. It is difficult to say that anti-Semitism should be treated differently than racism. If you have any questions about the legislation, I’d be happy to speak with you; my office numbers are below. In addition, Joe Sabag at the Israeli-American Coalition for Action was instrumental in providing outside support as I pushed the bill and I would highly recommend anyone considering such an effort speak with him. His email address is above. Have a great rest of your weekend, --Randy https://myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx? FileName=_h0741er.docx&DocumentType=Bill&BillNumber=0741&Session=2019 State Representative Randy Fine District 53 (South Brevard County) randy.fine@myfloridahouse.gov Tallahassee Office: Suite 1401, The Capitol 402 South Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1300 850-717-5053 District Office: 2539 Palm Bay Rd. NE. #5 Palm Bay, FL 32905 321-409-2017 From: To: Cc: Subject: Date: Joseph Sabag Fine, Randy; Alan Clemmons berkstrom@oksenate.gov; denise.crosswhitehader@okhouse.gov; marilyn.stark@okhouse.gov; ted.alexander@ncleg.net; stephen.owens@house.ks.gov; mary.bentley@arkansashouse.org; admotzen@agudathisrael.org; sandra.e.benen@gsk.com Re: Anti-Semitism Bill Discussed at ALEC Sunday, August 18, 2019 11:22:39 AM EXTERNAL EMAIL: This email originated from outside of the Legislature. USE CAUTION when clicking links or opening attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Thank you Randy! Friends: As we saw in FL and South Carolina, this bill requires a lot of resourcing in order to achieve a clean passage. My legal team has now taken Randy’s bill and refined it into a model that can be brought elsewhere. I urge you to please contact me or Rep. Alan Clemmons and take advantage of our policy support if you are considering filing a bill. We are here to serve. -Joe Sabag On Aug 18, 2019, at 10:52 AM, Fine, Randy wrote: It was great to see you at the ALEC conference last week in Austin and to briefly share the work we did in Florida passing HB 741, the strongest anti-Semitism bill ever passed in the United States. A link to a copy of the bill is below, but in effect the bill does two things: 1) takes the State Department definition of anti-Semitism and makes it the Florida definition of anti-Semitism and 2) requires that all antisemitism in our K-20 education system (whether acts by students, administrators or faculty, policies and procedures, club organizations, etc.) be treated identically as how racism is treated. In other words, they duplicate their policies for racism and simply swap out the word anti-Semitism. Students for Justice in Palestine is now treated the same way as the Ku Klux Klan – as they should be. The elegance of the solution is two-fold: 1) we avoid debate over “what is antiSemitism” by relying on the world’s most recognized definition. 2) We leverage decades of legal precedent in limiting racist speech, groups on campus, acts by faculty and administrators, etc. and simply apply it to anti-Semitism. It is difficult to say that anti-Semitism should be treated differently than racism. If you have any questions about the legislation, I’d be happy to speak with you; my office numbers are below. In addition, Joe Sabag at the Israeli-American Coalition for Action was instrumental in providing outside support as I pushed the bill and I would highly recommend anyone considering such an effort speak with him. His email address is above. Have a great rest of your weekend, --Randy https://myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx? FileName=_h0741er.docx&DocumentType=Bill&BillNumber=0741&Session=2019 State Representative Randy Fine District 53 (South Brevard County) randy.fine@myfloridahouse.gov Tallahassee Office: Suite 1401, The Capitol 402 South Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1300 850-717-5053 District Office: 2539 Palm Bay Rd. NE. #5 Palm Bay, FL 32905 321-409-2017