Congress: 118 · Status: active · Israel/Palestine classification: pro-Israel
Data (JSON) — machine-readable record of this bill (identifiers, sponsor, classification, actions, and the member-by-member vote breakdown).
Official record on Congress.gov — full text, actions, and cosponsor history for S 5431.
Sponsor: Cotton, Tom (R-Arkansas)
This bill prohibits federal agencies from using the term "West Bank" in official government materials, policy guidance, regulations, and communications. Instead, it mandates that the territory be referred to as "Judea and Samaria." The bill amends multiple existing foreign aid and diplomatic laws to replace all instances of "West Bank" with "Judea and Samaria." The Secretary of State may waive the prohibition if deemed in U.S. interests, but must notify Congress within 30 days.
This establishes a binding nomenclature requirement across all U.S. government communications regarding Palestinian territories, aligning official U.S. terminology with Israeli framing of the disputed land. The mandate extends to foreign aid statutes and diplomatic agreements, making the naming change operational rather than symbolic.