Outgoing mayor prohibits city contracts and pension funds from participating in BDS movement, setting stage for potential policy clash with incoming administration
Two New Executive Orders Target BDS Movement
With less than a month remaining in his tenure, Mayor Eric Adams signed two executive orders on Wednesday aimed at preventing New York City from participating in the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement targeting Israel. The timing is notable: Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who has openly supported BDS and pledged to dismantle city partnerships with Israel, takes office January 1, 2026.
Executive Order 60 prohibits mayoral agency heads, chief contracting officers, and appointees with discretion over contracting from engaging in procurement practices that discriminate against Israel, Israeli citizens, or entities associated with Israel. The order also bars the chief pension administrator and mayoral trustees from supporting divestment from Israeli bonds and assets. According to the NYC Comptroller’s office, the city’s five pension systems support over 750,000 employees, retirees, and beneficiaries, investing nearly $300 billion globally, including over $300 million in Israeli bonds and assets.
Executive Order 61 directs the NYPD commissioner to evaluate changes to patrol procedures regarding protests near houses of worship, balancing First Amendment rights with the protection of religious practice. The order follows recent incidents, including protests outside synagogues where demonstrators chanted controversial slogans.
Political Context and Timing
Adams announced the orders while speaking at the North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism conference in New Orleans, declaring that his administration recognizes the benefit of maintaining strong relationships between New York City and Israel. The mayor stated that BDS has no place in New York, calling the movement “antisemitic in nature and discriminatory in practice.”
The executive orders create an immediate challenge for Mamdani, who must decide whether to rescind them upon taking office. During his campaign, Mamdani defended BDS as a legitimate form of nonviolent pressure to ensure Israel complies with international law, while also pledging to combat antisemitism and serve all Jewish New Yorkers. According to reporting by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Mamdani has attempted to balance these positions throughout his campaign.
Legal and Financial Framework
New York City registered over $32 billion in procurement contracts with outside vendors in fiscal year 2024. The executive order emphasizes that city and state law prohibit discriminating against bidders based on national origin, arguing that BDS-related policies would violate these protections while failing to serve the public good or the fiduciary responsibilities of pension trustees.
Adams’ order builds on previous actions, including creating the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism in May 2025–the first such office in a major American city. That same month, Adams launched the New York City-Israel Economic Council to deepen cooperation in technology, public safety, climate resilience, infrastructure, and life sciences. In June, the mayor signed an executive order recognizing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, which identifies demonizing Israel and holding it to double standards as forms of contemporary antisemitism.
Controversy Over Israel Bond Divestment
The executive orders follow a contentious dispute between Adams and Comptroller Brad Lander over the handling of Israel bonds. Adams accused Lander of quietly allowing the city’s Israel bond holdings to mature without reinvestment, effectively divesting from Israel. Lander, who is Jewish and identifies as a progressive Zionist, defended the decision as sound financial management rather than a political statement, though he had supported Mamdani in the Democratic primary.
When Lander took office in January 2022, the city’s pension funds held approximately $39 million in Israel bonds–investments maintained for decades. Under his stewardship, those holdings dropped to zero as bonds matured without renewal. Adams’ administration demanded documentation of all related communications, suggesting the policy appeared to target only Israel bonds during a global BDS campaign.
Broader National Context
New York City is home to the largest Jewish population outside Israel, with antisemitic incidents representing the majority of hate crimes in the city, according to NYPD hate crime statistics. Adams has made combating antisemitism a centerpiece of his administration, particularly as tensions escalated following the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel and subsequent Gaza conflict.
New York State also maintains anti-BDS policies. Governor Kathy Hochul’s Executive Order 157 directs state entities to divest public funds from organizations supporting BDS, making New York the first state to implement such comprehensive measures. At the federal level, President Donald Trump’s administration has vigorously defended Israel, including imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court judges and prosecutors investigating alleged Israeli war crimes.
Implications for Mamdani Administration
Legal experts question whether mayors have authority to enforce international arrest warrants or significantly alter pension investment strategies without broader approval. Federal government controls immigration policy, and under agreements as UN host country, the United States typically issues visas for official UN business–though exceptions occur, such as the Trump administration’s September refusal to admit Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
Mamdani’s response to these executive orders will likely serve as an early test of his administration’s approach to Israel-related policies and his ability to navigate competing demands from different constituencies. His victory made him New York’s first anti-Zionist mayor of a city home to 1.6 million Jews, marking what many observers see as a dramatic shift in the city’s political landscape. The Anti-Defamation League has launched a “Mamdani Monitor” to track the incoming mayor’s statements and actions regarding antisemitism and Israel-related issues.
As the January 1 transition approaches, these executive orders represent Adams’ final efforts to shape city policy on Israel relations, setting up what could become one of the defining early controversies of the Mamdani administration. Whether the new mayor keeps, modifies, or rescinds these orders will send clear signals about his governing priorities and approach to one of New York’s most sensitive political issues.
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