Senator Rounds Questions Witness on China's Agricultural Land Purchases Near Military Sites

National Security Threat of Foreign Agricultural Land Purchases

• ⚠️ China is identified as the principal national security threat, with numerous reports of attempts to gather data or establish facilities near sensitive US sites.
• 💡 The PASS Act, introduced by Senator Rounds and others, aims to curtail agricultural land purchases by stated foreign adversaries near military bases.
• 🎯 The CPAS (Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States) has expanded its review authority over foreign real estate purchases near American military bases, adding 56 facilities across 30 states.

Evolution of Foreign Investment Review

• 📈 In the mid-to-late 2010s, there was a significant shift in CPAS transactions from European and Japanese entities to China, which began using state-owned or private companies for transactions.
• 🏛️ Congress responded by establishing FIRRMA (Foreign Investment Risk Reduction Modernization Act) to modernize CPAS and address these evolving threats.
• 🔍 Proximity transactions are closely monitored by the committee, and there's encouragement for collaboration to identify and address any existing gaps in authority.

Domestic Mineral Processing and National Defense

• 🔑 South Dakota and similar states possess mineral resources crucial for national defense and reducing reliance on adversaries like China.
• ⚙️ Processing is highlighted as the critical next link in the supply chain, as it is currently often sent to China.
• 📊 Antimony is cited as an example where China controls a significant portion of global processing, emphasizing the need to bring both mineral production and processing capabilities back to the U.S.
• 🤝 The Defense Production Act (DPA) can be utilized to support companies establishing domestic processing capacity, requiring investment and reauthorization to be more effective.
• ⏳ A challenge exists in building new processing facilities due to permitting delays, necessitating parallel development of mineral extraction and processing to avoid a "chicken and egg" problem.