Barb Van Andel-Gaby Chairman of Heritage Foundation - Economy | Official Website
The Heritage Foundation has published a report titled “The Sale of U.S. Real Estate to Foreign Adversaries Threatens National Security,” exploring the national security threats posed by the Communist Chinese Party (CCP)'s acquisition of U.S. real estate. As tensions between China and the United States rise, federal national security agencies and state governments are urged to safeguard the nation from these emerging threats.
The report's findings have been incorporated into model legislation drafted by The Heritage Foundation, which could serve as an effective tool for state governments seeking to prohibit Communist China’s acquisition of sensitive American land.
Bryan Burack, Senior Policy Advisor for China and the Indo-Pacific in the Asian Studies Center at The Heritage Foundation and author of the report, stated:
“China's ownership of American land is nontransparent and unscrutinized, and the federal government has failed to address potential threats even as Chinese ownership of U.S. real estate increases. The United States should be watching land and real estate transactions from our top adversary, not ignoring them.
“Communist China seeks to undermine the United States in an effort to become the world's dominant power. The United States’ natural resources are one of our most important advantages over the CCP, and they need to be protected.
“State governments across the U.S. deserve to be commended for taking action where the federal government has not. I hope this report and model legislation can help empower their efforts with ground truth and options for legislation.”
Key takeaways from the report include:
- Nearly half of all U.S. states have taken action to restrict foreign adversary real estate purchases in response to genuine concerns and threats.
- The U.S. government lacks ability to track Chinese real estate purchases and is unaware of how much American real estate Chinese entities own.
- Even Chinese ownership of agricultural land, legally required to be disclosed to the Department of Agriculture, is understated by at least 50%.
- Chinese ownership of American real estate is increasing, despite overall Chinese investment in the U.S. decreasing.
- The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) process has repeatedly failed to prevent threats from Chinese real estate purchases and has failed to reveal hidden Chinese ownership of agricultural land.
The model legislation for state governments to combat Communist China’s acquisition of American land and real estate can be found here.
