TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Dec 30, 2025

Rep. Chris Todd, R-Jackson, has filed HB1446 to ban use of the term "West Bank" — referring to the Palestinian territory west of the Jordan River and Dead Sea controlled by Israel — in official state documents. It would replace references to that area with the term "Judea and Samaria." The Tennessean reports that the bill also embeds religious, historical and national security arguments in state law to support permanent Israeli control of the territory. The proposal adopts language commonly used by Israel’s settler movement and asserts a broader ideological struggle rooted in Judeo-Christian values. Todd, a member of the Tennessee-Israel Legislative Caucus, says the bill ensures state documents use what he considers historically and biblically accurate terminology.