On Thursday, United States Representative John Moolenaar, Chairman of the Select Committee on the CCP in the House of Representatives, along with bipartisan lawmakers, introduced the “Protecting U.S. Farmland and Sensitive Sites from Foreign Adversaries Act.” This bill aims to address loopholes in U.S. government oversight of foreign land acquisitions to safeguard national security and food security.
For a long time, hostile forces like the CCP have been able to purchase American farmland and real estate near sensitive national security sites with limited or in many cases, no review process in place. These acquisitions pose a serious threat to critical infrastructure, military facilities, and food supply in the United States.
The bill ensures that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has the necessary jurisdiction to review real estate transactions involving hostile foreign powers such as the CCP, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. With few exceptions, any purchase of U.S. farmland and land near critical infrastructure by hostile forces will be deemed an unacceptable risk to national security.
Furthermore, the bill establishes a new category of “high-risk real estate transactions” that mandate rigorous review for acquisitions involving farmland, ports, telecommunications infrastructure, and land near military facilities and intelligence locations.
In addition, the bill formally includes food security and agricultural biotechnology risks within the scope of CFIUS review and ensures that the Secretary of Agriculture plays a critical role in assessing such transactions.
Representative Moolenaar emphasized, “Food security is national security, and we cannot allow foreign hostile forces like the CCP to buy farmland around our most sensitive military and critical infrastructure. This bipartisan bill closes dangerous loopholes, fundamentally prohibiting foreign hostile forces from purchasing land and ensuring that the U.S. government has the tools to prevent these transactions from threatening national security before they occur.”
Founder and CEO of State Armor, Michael Lucci, stated, “Frankly, hostile foreign forces have no right to own land in the United States, especially around our military facilities. While half of the states have taken action to prohibit foreign hostile forces from owning U.S. land, federal action is needed to address this national issue.”
Lucci added, “It’s fortunate that Chairman Moolenaar and the Select Committee have come forward with a national solution to protect our country from those seeking to disrupt our way of life.”
Adam Savit, Director of China Policy at the America First Policy Institute and former Senior Advisor for National Security at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, pointed out that hostile forces led by the CCP are exploiting loopholes in federal law to acquire land near U.S. military bases, critical infrastructure, and food supply areas.
Savit stressed, “We must consider food security as national security, and the federal government needs the jurisdiction and tools to prevent these transactions before they occur, rather than negotiating remedies afterwards. States have been leading on this issue for years, and federal law enforcement agencies should step up their efforts.”
“We now need legislation to close these loopholes, protecting America’s critical infrastructure and communities, and the provisions of this bill are designed for exactly that purpose,” added Savit.
Alexandria Paolozzi Moore, Senior Director of Government Relations at FDD Action, stated, “The CCP’s brazen intelligence gathering on U.S. soil demonstrates their exploitation of all vulnerabilities in our national security system. From deploying drones over military facilities to acquiring farmland near our most sensitive locations, this pattern is increasingly audacious and must be countered.”
She added, “FDD Action is proud to support this legislation and urges Congress to take action to defend our nation’s most valuable security assets.”
The bill has garnered bipartisan support from representatives including Ashley Hinson (Republican, Iowa), Neal Dunn, Dr. (Republican, Florida), Gus Bilirakis (Republican, Florida), Dusty Johnson (Republican, South Dakota), Zach Nunn (Republican, Iowa), Nathaniel Moran (Republican, Texas), Daniel Newhouse (Republican, Washington), Pat Harrigan (Republican, North Carolina), and Randy Feenstra (Republican, Iowa).
Additionally, it has support from Julia Brownley (Democrat, California), Josh Gottheimer (Democrat, New Jersey), Jimmy Panetta (Democrat, California), and Mike Thompson (Democrat, California).