1. United States
2. Maine
3. Letter

I respectfully urge you to introduce legislation requiring the state to divest public funds from, and refrain from creating or renewing state contracts with, corporations that provide material support for authoritarian governance practices, including unconstitutional surveillance, unlawful detention, or enforcement operations carried out in defiance of court orders. State governments already condition public contracts on corporate conduct in many contexts. In fact, 38 U.S. states have enacted laws or executive orders discouraging or restricting boycotts of Israel, commonly by limiting or conditioning state contracts with companies that participate in such boycotts. The same legislative authority can and should be applied here to ensure that public funds are not used to support practices that undermine constitutional principles and the rule of law. Thank you for your consideration and for your service to your constituents.