Texas Gov. Greg Abbott admonishes City of San Marcos for proposed Israel-Palestine resolution

AUSTIN, Texas - Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is admonishing the City of San Marcos for a proposed resolution concerning Israel and Palestine.

Abbott sent a letter on April 29 to Mayor Jane Hughson about the proposed resolution.

What is the proposed resolution?

What we know:

The San Marcos City Council recently held a discussion about a possible resolution "calling for the immediate and permanent ceasefire in occupied Palestine, an arms embargo on Israel, recognition of Palestinian sovereignty, and the protection of constitutional rights for all people under national and international law."

Watch the full discussion below:

Read the three-page proposed resolution below:

Some council members put the resolution forward at the April 15 meeting. 

"This is a moral issue," said Councilmember Amanda Rodriguez (Place 6).

"We cannot afford to stay silent," said Councilmember Alyssa Garza (Place 3).

The resolution calls for an "immediate, permanent and sustained ceasefire" and condemns the killing of civilians. But it goes further than that—accusing Israel of "genocide", calling for an end to its "illegal occupation of [Palestinians'] land", and demanding an "arms embargo" to stop the US from funding Israel's military, claiming more than $4 million of that came from San Marcos taxpayers. 

"This is a manmade atrocity, and we are fully subsidizing it," said Rodriguez. 

In a statement Wednesday, Rodriguez slammed Abbott's letter, and affirmed she would vote for the resolution. However, others, including Mayor Jane Hughson, have expressed reservations about voting for it—noting the city hasn't made resolutions for other conflicts like Russia's war on Ukraine. 

The resolution could see changes before it's finalized. The city council voted to put the resolution to a formal vote at their next meeting on May 6.

What did Abbott say in the letter?

What they're saying:

In the letter, Abbott called it a "pro-Hamas resolution".

"Israel is a stalwart ally of the United States and a friend to Texas. I have repeatedly made clear that Texas will not tolerate antisemitism. Anti-Israel policies are anti-Texas policies," Abbott says in the letter.

Abbott's letter reads:

"In Texas, no governmental entity may enter into a contract worth $100,000 or more unless it includes a "written verification" that the contracting entity "does not boycott Israel" and "will not boycott Israel during the term of the contract." TEX. GOV’T CODE § 2271.002. A "governmental entity" includes a political subdivision, like the City of San Marcos. Id. §§ 2251.001(3), 2271.001(3). And to "boycott Israel" means "refusing to deal with, terminating business activities with, or otherwise taking any action that is intended to penalize, inflict economic harm on, or limit commercial relations specifically with Israel …" Id. §§ 808.001(1), 2271.001(1)."

Abbott says that San Marcos's proposed resolution seems "calculated" to violate Texas law by calling for the city to "limit its commercial relations with Israel".

What's next:

Abbott says that his office is already reviewing active grants with the city to determine whether it has falsely certified compliance with Texas law.

Also, Abbott says that if the city moves forward with the resolution, his office will not "enter into any future grant agreements with the City and will act swiftly to terminate active grants for non-compliance."

Abbott adds that he will further direct all other state agencies to review agreements with the City for possible breach.

Read Abbott's full letter below:

Community reaction to the resolution

Local perspective:

Supporters and opponents of the resolution spoke out Wednesday. 

"Greg Abbott's letter feels like a continuation of that intimidation, an attempt to suppress free speech," said Scott Cove, co-organizer of Palestine Solidarity San Marcos. 

"It [the resolution] really paints a one-sided and factually questionable portrait," said Rabbi Daniel Septimus, CEO of Shalom Austin, "that doesn't recognize the trauma that Israeli citizens have."

"We are asking that our allies remind the San Marcos City Council that their focus should be on local business," added Septimus. "Let's not divide our communities."

Constitutional law expert on the resolution

Dig deeper:

"Does that law about Anti-Israel boycotts by government contractors apply here to this proposed resolution, by the city of San Marcos?" said David Coale, a Texas-based appellate attorney and constitutional law expert. 

Coale says that's a question that will likely be decided by the courts—if Council passes the resolution. 

"If they do, I expect that the attorney general will sue and say this was done in violation of law."

So what could that mean for those city grants?

"The state probably does have some authority to cut some of that grant money depending on however it's written," Coale said.

Israel Hamas warGreg AbbottTexas PoliticsSan Marcos