❓WHAT HAPPENED: Republican Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Democrat Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) introduced the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure (AFIDA) Improvements Act to enhance oversight of foreign ownership of U.S. farmland.

👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Senators Pete Ricketts, John Fetterman, Tommy Tuberville, John Cornyn, Roger Wicker, and Rep. Don Bacon, alongside the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).

📍WHEN & WHERE: The bipartisan bill has been introduced amidst growing concerns over foreign land ownership and national security.

💬KEY QUOTE: “Communist China is our greatest geopolitical threat. This is a way for us to improve the disclosure that’s going on with regard to the purchase of this agricultural land, so we can take other action if necessary.” — Sen. Pete Ricketts.

🎯IMPACT: The bill seeks to increase transparency, protect sensitive U.S. military installations, and safeguard the nation’s food supply from foreign adversaries like China.

A bipartisan effort led by Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Democrat Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) aims to strengthen oversight of foreign ownership of U.S. farmland. The Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure (AFIDA) Improvements Act seeks to implement recommendations from a January 2024 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report highlighting the shortcomings of the current AFIDA framework in combating foreign land acquisitions.

“Communist China is our greatest geopolitical threat,” Ricketts said, emphasizing the need for increased disclosure and action to prevent China’s purchase of American agricultural land. The bill’s introduction coincides with the arrest of two Chinese nationals accused of smuggling biological materials, including a dangerous crop-destroying fungus, into the U.S., which authorities described as a potential agroterrorism weapon.

Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin stated, “Protecting America’s food supply and national security remains a top priority. Last week’s smuggling attempt by Chinese nationals of Fusarium graminearum, a dangerous crop-destroying fungus, poses a significant bioterrorism threat.”

The bill also addresses concerns over Chinese ownership of farmland near sensitive military installations, such as Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. Between 2010 and 2021, Chinese ownership of U.S. farmland increased significantly, according to the USDA. Ricketts warned, “American farmland should not be a tool that our adversaries, like Communist China, can use to attack us from inside our own country.”

This follows news of debilitating attacks being carried out by Ukrainian and Israeli drones in Russia and Iran after earlier infiltrations, raising concerns that the U.S. could face similar attacks out of Chinese-owned farms near American military installations.

The AFIDA Improvements Act proposes enhanced reporting requirements, updates to the AFIDA handbook, and the establishment of an online system for tracking foreign investments. Co-sponsors of the bill include Senators Tommy Tuberville, John Cornyn, Roger Wicker, and Rep. Don Bacon. “We are at the most dangerous point in our history right now since World War II,” Ricketts said, urging vigilance in protecting national security.

Image by Tom Wolf.

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