Biden Administration Proposes Tighter Controls Over Foreign Purchases of Land Near Military Bases

The Biden administration is proposing tighter controls over foreign land purchases by adding eight additional military installations to the list for national security review.

This addition expands the jurisdiction of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a federal panel that reviews foreign acquisitions for national security risks. Once finalized, any non-excepted real estate purchases or leases within a 100-mile radius near those additional sites will be considered a CFIUS “covered transaction,” according to a federal register notice that was posted today and scheduled to be published on Friday.

The latest federal proposal comes as American land ownership by foreign adversaries, especially China, has been an increasing concern for state governments and the general public. Republican-led states such as Florida, Texas, Virginia, and South Dakota have undertaken state-level legislative efforts to rein tighter control on foreign land purchases.

In addition, some of the proposed additional sites are related to high-profile cases that attracted national attention.

In the fall of 2021, for example, a Chinese company bought through its subsidiary, Fufeng USA, 370 acres of farmland to build a corn-milling plant in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

The land is within 15 miles of the Grand Forks Air Force Base, which houses sensitive drone, satellite, and surveillance technology, and is among the proposed eight additions. In December 2022, CFIUS determined that the land sale for the Fufeng project was “not a ‘covered transaction’” under the committee’s jurisdiction.

The project proceeded until, at the end of January, the Department of the Air Force stated (pdf) that the branch has an “unambiguous” view that “the proposed project presents a significant threat to national security with both near- and long-term risks of significant impacts to our operations in the area.”

CFIUS currently has a list of over 200 military sites (pdf) around which non-excepted real estate purchases or leases are considered covered transactions. As defined by the Department of Defense, the covered distances may be a one-mile radius, a 100-mile radius, or territory boundaries. And transactions in urbanized or single-family housing areas may qualify as exceptions.

The proposed eight additions for “extended range,” or a 100-mile radius coverage, are Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California; Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas; Ellsworth Air Force Base in Box Elder, South Dakota; Grand Forks Air Force Base in Grand Forks, North Dakota; Iowa National Guard Joint Force Headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa; Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas; Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas; and Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona.

The Laughlin Air Force Base, among the additional military installations, is related to another high-profile case.

In 2016, a Chinese billionaire and former military official, Sun Guangxin, purchased about 140,000 acres of agricultural land in Val Verde County, Texas, and planned to build a wind farm on the property. When the community took note that the proposed wind project would have allowed the Chinese owner access to Texas’s electrical grid and that the property is near the Laughlin Air Force Base, a training ground for military pilots, it raised national security concerns.

In June 2020, CFIUS cleared Sun Guangxin’s wind farm project on condition of mitigation agreements, which were reached with the Department of Defense in July 2021. After that, however, the project was halted by a new Texas law that went into effect in June 2021. The Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act bans Texas businesses and governments from doing business with foreign entities from China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran if these transactions would provide the foreign enterprises remote access or control of critical infrastructure.

Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, another military site on the new additions list, is the first location that houses the U.S. military’s first new stealth bomber in 34 years, the B-21 Raider. Dyess Air Force Base, on the proposed list, will also receive B-21 bombers.

“Glad to see the Biden administration is following our lead to protect our national security infrastructure from Communist China. Better late than never,” South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem said in a tweet Wednesday. “I look forward to continuing to work with the SD Legislature and ag leaders to address this.”

The proposed rule, set to be published on May 5, will be effective after a 30-day public comment period.