Supreme Court won’t upset Arkansas anti-Israel boycott law

(AP) — The Supreme Court has refused to step into a legal fight over state laws that require contractors to pledge not to boycott Israel. 

The justices on Tuesday rejected an appeal on behalf of an alternative weekly newspaper in Little Rock, Arkansas, that objected to a state law that reduces fees paid to contractors that refuse to sign the pledge. 

The full federal appeals court in St. Louis upheld the law, overturning a three-judge panel’s finding that it violated constitutional free speech rights. 

Similar measures in Arizona, Kansas and Texas were initially blocked by courts, prompting lawmakers to focus only on larger contracts. 

Arkansas’ law applies to contracts worth $1,000 or more.