Johnson & Select Committee on CCP Crack Down on Foreign Adversaries’ Land Purchases

Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Select Committee on the CCP introduced the Protecting U.S. Farmland and Sensitive Sites From Foreign Adversaries Act with the support of U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.). The bill would crack down on land purchases by foreign adversary entities, like the CCP, to protect America’s military bases, food supply, and research facilities. It also allows the Secretary of Agriculture to vote in Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) reviews involving farmland or agriculture technology.

“Food security is national security—the Secretary of Ag must have a seat at the table when it comes to CFIUS decisions,” said Johnson. “We know China poses a significant threat to America in more ways than one. Allowing the CCP close access to our food supply and military is a major red flag.”

Johnson has long been an advocate for limiting CCP’s purchases of American farmland. He currently cosponsors legislation to prohibit these purchases and to add the Secretary of Agriculture to CFIUS.

Background:

Current CFIUS regulations do not prevent foreign adversaries from purchasing land near major military bases or defense-funded research centers. In 2022, CCP company Fufeng Group purchased land near the Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota, sparking national security concerns. Grand Forks was not included as a designated military installation that CFIUS had jurisdiction over. CFIUS also lacks jurisdiction over some purchases of U.S. farmland that could be exploited by the CCP to gain control over the U.S. food supply.

The Protecting U.S. Farmland and Sensitive Sites From Foreign Adversaries Act would:

• Give CFIUS jurisdiction over all non-urban, non-single “housing unit” land purchases by foreign adversary entities, similar to the fact set of the Fufeng Group’s purchase of land.
• Mandate CFIUS to consider U.S. food security, including via biotechnology acquisition, as a factor in its national security reviews and require the Secretary of Agriculture have a vote in CFIUS reviews of transactions that involve farmland or agriculture technology.
• Establish a “presumption of non-resolvability” by CFIUS and raise the approval threshold for CFIUS transactions by a foreign adversary entity purchasing near sensitive sites like major military sites, acknowledged intelligence facilities, etc.
• Mandatory CFIUS filing for foreign adversary entities making land purchases near sensitive sites.
• Require CFIUS to expand the list of sensitive national security sites to all military facilities, acknowledged intelligence sites, national laboratories, and defense-funded university-affiliated research centers; critical telecommunication nodes; etc.

Full bill text here.