Last week, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed the Protecting American Agriculture from Foreign Adversaries Act, HR 9456, introduced by Rep. Dan Newhouse (R), with a vote of 269 to 149, mostly following party lines. 55 Democrats joined 214 Republicans for the bill and 148 Democrats and one Republican, Tom McClintock of California, voted against it.
The House bill was introduced to limit the sale of U.S. farmland to China and other "adversaries." Besides China, other adversaries include Iran, North Korea, and Russia. Newhouse’s bill also would make the Agriculture Department a member of Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) when it considers transactions involving agricultural land, agricultural biotechnology, and the agricultural industry.
“It is the beginning of the effort to keep our greatest adversaries from being able to purchase any American farmland, because the way I see it, a group like the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] that has made it their goal to cripple the United States has no business having a hand in our supply chains and critical lands,” said sponsor Rep. Dan Newhouse.
According to a statement, the Biden Administration opposed the bill, stating that "the bill is unnecessary since its two main requirements are already operationally part of the CFIUS".
“Chinese ownership of American farmland increased more than 20-fold in the past decade,” said Senator Mike Braun. "The amount of American soil in the hands of adversaries will only rise if we don’t implement these restrictions and oversight.”
There are only a few weeks left on the legislative calendar for this session, but the bill is on its way to the Senate. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Mike Braun (R-IN) have introduced the Senate version.
