SEN. KOLKHORST FILES BILL TO STOP FOREIGN GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP OF TEXAS LANDS

  

State Senator Lois Kolkhorst has filed legislation in an effort to prevent foreign governmental ownership of Texas lands.

Senate Bill 147 builds on Senate Bill 2116, which passed the Texas Legislature unanimously in 2021 and protects critical infrastructure against contracts with certain countries.  SB 147 names China, Iran, North Korea and Russia as countries prohibited from future purchases of Texas lands.

If passed, SB 147 would forbid any future purchase of or acquiring the title to real property in the state of Texas by governments or entities affiliated with those countries or their citizens.

In a press release announcing the bill’s filing, Kolkhorst cites the purchase in 2021 of over 130,000 acres near Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio by a Chinese-controlled firm for a windmill project.  She also points to similar large land purchases by Chinese-backed companies in Florida and North Dakota. 

Kolkhorst says, “The growing ownership of Texas land by some foreign entities is highly disturbing and raises red flags for many Texans.”  She says passage of this law “delivers some basic safeguards to ensure Texans remain in control of Texas land.”