A Texas legislator who unsuccessfully pushed to ban ownership of land by Chinese and other “foreign adversaries” is back with a renewed push for a similar measure.
KXAN reports the new effort is aimed at “hostile foreign organizations” from owning Texas land and points to Chinese-affiliated companies operating in the state.
Texas resident Janet Liu who fought successfully to defeat the bill in 2023 told the Dallas Morning News she’s unsure if opponents could defeat it a second time.
“We will fight, but I don’t know if we will win,” she said.
Any new bill will be watered down and exclude lawful permanent residents from the ban, according to Fox4.
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“It’s absolutely vital for the whole country that Texas move to protect itself because you’re a gateway for the rest of us,” Christopher Holton with the Center for Security Policy said to Fox4.
KXAN reports that Chinese own about 162,000 acres in Texas, more than any other state. Foreign entities own about 3% of all land in the United States-almost all are from friendly foreign governments. China just owns about 1% of all land in the U.S.
About 24 states have currently prohibit or limit foreign land ownership.
“That is plainly racist, and our community will not stand for it,” State Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston, said. “If they want to talk about critical infrastructure, it’s already been addressed. What they’re talking about is homeownership, is business ownership. It’s basically saying, ‘no Asians, no Chinese are welcome here.’”
State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) is once again behind the proposed ban.
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