WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) cosponsored two bills to protect America’s farmland and businesses from the Chinese Communist Party and add the Secretary of Agriculture to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).
“We have seen foreign adversaries increase their ownership of American farmland and ag businesses over the past ten years, and it’s concerning,” said Johnson. “This poses a threat to our food supply, food security, and supply chain. The PASS Act ensures America’s ag land and ag businesses are not owned and operated by our foreign adversaries. Given increased threats, the Secretary of Agriculture needs a seat at the CFIUS table to ensure the protection of American farmland and agriculture interests.”
The amount of foreign-owned U.S. agricultural land has increased significantly over the past ten years. Johnson is a member of the Select Committee on China, which plans to examine China’s influence on American Agriculture in the coming months.
The Promoting Agriculture Safeguards and Security (PASS) Act led by U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) would:
- Prohibit China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from purchasing U.S. agricultural land and agricultural companies,
- Add the Secretary of Agriculture as a standing member of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to consider agriculture needs when making determinations affecting our national security,
- Require the President to submit a report to Congress on any waiver granted to a prohibited country, and
- Require reporting from the Secretary of Agriculture on the risk of foreign purchases of agriculture companies to the American agriculture sector.
The Foreign Adversary Risk Management (FARM) Act led by U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) would:
- Add the Secretary of Agriculture as a member to CFIUS,
- Add language to protect the U.S. agriculture industry from foreign control through transactions, mergers, acquisitions, or agreements,
- Designate agricultural supply chains as critical infrastructure and critical technologies, and
- Require a report to Congress on current and potential foreign investments in the U.S. agricultural industry from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Government Accountability Office (GAO).
