Senators Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville applaud House passage of legislation to protect American Farmland from Adversaries

Senators Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville applaud House passage of legislation to protect American Farmland from Adversaries

September 12, 2024 WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Katie Britt (R-Alabama) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Alabama) both issued a statements applauding the U.S. House of Representatives for passage of the companion legislation to the Protecting American Agriculture from Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024. The bipartisan legislation, which Senators Britt, Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) introduced earlier this week in the Senate, would add the Secretary of Agriculture as a permanent member of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).

The Secretary's inclusion to the Committee would add another layer of scrutiny on foreign acquisitions of U.S. farmland and agricultural industries. The bipartisan legislation would also specifically flag farmland purchases by foreign adversaries like China, North Korea, Russia, and Iran for CFIUS. According to the USDA, over 43.4 million acres of U.S. agricultural land is foreign-owned – though most of that is owned by Canadians and citizens of other American allies.

"Food security is national security and that requires America's farmland be protected from foreign adversaries, like China," Britt said in a statement. "I believe one acre of American farmland owned by the Chinese Communist Party is one acre too many," said Senator Britt. "To prevent malign actors from controlling Alabama and America's farmland, the Secretary of Agriculture must have a seat at the table. This commonsense legislation ensures the Secretary is made a permanent member of CFIUS in order to weigh in on the needs of America's agriculture industry when reviewing foreign investment and ownership. I'm proud to see this bicameral, bipartisan effort pass the House and urge Senator Schumer to now bring this commonsense legislation to the Senate floor."

"Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have bowed to China every chance that they get-even when it comes to our agriculture industry," said Senator Tuberville. "In the last decade alone, we have seen a surge of over 35% in foreign land purchases-including in my home state of Alabama. We can't give our adversaries like China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran room to negatively influence our agricultural supply chains and food production. Food security is national security, which is why I'm proud to introduce this legislation with Senator Braun that ensures the Secretary of Agriculture has a seat at the table on CFIUS and the opportunity to push back on proposed foreign ag investments."

Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Washington) introduced the legislation in the House, and it passed by a vote of 269 to 149.

The Protecting American Agriculture from Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024 would:

Permanently include the Secretary of Agriculture as a member of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) with respect to covered transactions involving agricultural land, agricultural biotech, or the transportation, storage, and processing of agricultural products; and

Authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to report both agricultural land transactions that involve foreign persons of China, North Korea, Russia, or Iran, and transactions that require AFIDA reporting to CFIUS.

The Legislation does have a chance in the Senate as Sens. Tester and Baldwin (both Democrats) face difficult re-election battles in states that could be won by Donald Trump. Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) has to weigh whether helping Chinese investors outweighs helping his Democratic colleagues win reelection.

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