Arkansas bills keep Chinese firms from leasing land near infrastructure
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) introduced a legislative package Wednesday that bans "Chinese Communist Party-linked companies" from leasing or buying land around military bases and electric substations.
“We previously banned companies linked to the CCP [China Communist Party] and other foreign adversaries from owning farmland. We'll ban those companies now from leasing property and owning property near our critical infrastructure, and we will shorten the amount of time a banned company has to divest from our state,” Sanders said of the measure.
The package builds upon her 2023 efforts to ban foreign ownership of agricultural land and digital asset mining in the state through Act 636 and 174.
Both laws were blocked by U.S. District Judge Kristine G. Baker following court battles in which plaintiffs claimed the acts were unconstitutional.
Sanders’s new package enhances past limitations for foreign companies and also features a clause that will withhold funding from colleges and universities that have Chinese cultural centers, a Confucius Institute or programs related to the People’s Republic of China.
“We will also ban made-in-China promotional items from state government. These items should be made in America,” Sanders said, lauding President Trump for the hard-line stance against the nation.
“Every state in the country has a role to play in defending America from our foreign adversaries, and I'm proud that Arkansas is leading the way,” the lawmaker continued.
State Sen. Blake Johnson (R) is a lead sponsor on the bill, alongside five House Republicans in the Arkansas Legislature.
“From banning Chinese military drones, to prohibiting land ownership, and now instituting severe penalties and outlawing foreign influence peddling; These restrictions aim to protect Arkansas’s economic and security interests by limiting CCP-backed entities, full stop,” state Rep. Brit McKenzie (R), a co-sponsor of the bill said in a statement.
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