Gov. Greg Abbott
(R-TX) is the latest supporter of a Texas Senate bill that would ban citizens from China
, Russia, North Korea, and Iran from purchasing land in the state.
The bill, which was proposed by state state Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R) in November, aims to stem foreign influence in Texas.
It would do so by disallowing the purchase or acquisition of property by citizens or companies based in the four countries, according to the Texas Tribune.
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Last week, Abbott said he would sign the proposed bill if it passes the state legislature, joining Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and former President Donald Trump in supporting bans on foreign land investment in the United States.
The bill comes amid a wave of proposed legislation and rhetoric targeting China, which opponents believe could escalate hate crimes against Asians, including those who are U.S. citizens.
However, Kolkhorst told the Texas Tribune, the bill “will make crystal clear that the prohibitions do not apply to United States citizens and lawful permanent residents.”
State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, said the bill reminds him of other anti-Chinese legislation, such as the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, which limited Chinese immigration. Wu also asked why the Republican Party was focused on China instead of other communist countries like Cuba or Vietnam.
“We oppose communist countries, right?” Wu asked. “Where’s Cuba? Where’s Venezuela? Where’s Vietnam? You say that we oppose countries that are hostile to our country? Great, where is Saudi Arabia? Where is Afghanistan? Where are all these other places that have caused our country harm? It becomes a real slippery slope.”
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Republicans are concerned about the number of foreign land holdings in the U.S. Foreign investors held interest in approximately 40 million acres of U.S. agricultural land (forest and farmland) as of Dec. 31, 2021. The number is an increase of 2.4 million acres from December 2020, according to the Department of Agriculture’s 2021 land report
. China only owned 383,000 of those acres nationwide, and the other three countries owned 3,000 acres cumulatively.
