Democratic Rep. Debra Tendrich and GOP Rep. Chase Tramont sponsored the “Judeah and Samaria” legislation. (Photo by Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix)
Forget the “West Bank” — the Florida House has voted overwhelmingly to replace the reference in all public and charter schools and state agencies with “Judea and Samaria.” The final vote was 92-14.
“Judea and Samaria” are the biblical names for the region in the Middle East and is how the Israeli government refers to the area. The international community, including the U.S. government, refers to the territory as the West Bank (of the Jordan River) and doesn’t recognize Israeli sovereignty there. Approximately 3 million Palestinians and half a million Israeli settlers live in the West Bank.
The bipartisan measure (HB 31) is sponsored by Rep. Debra Tendrich, D-Lake Worth, and Rep. Chase Tramont, R-Port Orange.
Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, said that in the context of international law and United Nations diplomacy, the West Bank “is a term that the entire world uses, and it’s so important for us to respect that dynamic in the context of peace negotiations.”
However, Rep. Mike Gottlieb, D-Davie, argued that calling the area the West Bank is “akin to banning the historical archeological and historical name of the region, Judea and Samaria. It’s the same thing. It is a ban on Jewish heritage. Let’s right a wrong. Let’s restore the history and dignity of the people who are indigenous to the region by calling the area Judea and Samaria.”
Rep. Tendrich insisted the bill didn’t erase anyone’s history. “What it does do is it corrects political rebranding and counters historical erasure,” she said.
Last summer, U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said while visiting Israel that he would work to stop the use of the term “West Bank” at the federal level, instead promoting exclusive use of “Judea and Samaria,” according to the Jerusalem Post. However, congressional legislation on that topic is not moving in Washington.
According to the House bill analysis, any fiscal impact would depend on the extent to which future materials contain the term.
Similar bills have been filed in red-leaning states, including Alabama. Tennessee, and Oklahoma
A companion measure in the Senate (SB 1106), sponsored by Ralph Massullo, R-Lecanto, has just one more committee stop before going to the floor.
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