Texas House Passes Senate Bill 17, 85-60, Banning Land Sales to China, Russia, Iran, North Korea; Governor Can Expand List
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The Texas House has given initial approval to Senate Bill 17, sponsored by Sen. Lois Kolkhorst and carried in the House by Rep. Cole Hefner, which would ban citizens, companies, and government entities from China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea from purchasing property in Texas. The bill passed in a largely partisan 85-60 vote after nearly six hours of debate.
The legislation allows the governor to add additional countries or transnational criminal organizations to the list of those barred from property ownership. It covers a wide range of real estate, including agricultural, commercial, and industrial land, and would be enforced by the Texas Attorney General's office through court action. According to the USDA, about 5.7 million acres in Texas are foreign-owned, with China accounting for approximately 3.6% of that land.
Supporters, including Rep. Hefner, argue the bill is necessary to protect Texas' land and resources from adversarial nations. The House version narrowed exemptions compared to the Senate version, removing a provision that allowed foreign ownership of a residential homestead and limiting lease exemptions to one year or less.
Opponents, led by Rep. Gene Wu and civil rights groups such as Asian Texans for Justice, argue the bill could lead to discrimination against Asian Americans and other immigrant communities. An amendment to exempt visa holders, asylees, and refugees failed. Lily Trieu, executive director of Asian Texans for Justice, expressed concern that the bill would lead to heightened scrutiny and unfair denials for Asian Americans seeking to purchase property.
The bill, which will take effect on September 1 if enacted, now returns to the Senate for consideration of House amendments. It is similar to Senate Bill 147, which passed the Senate in a previous session but did not advance in the House.
The Texas House passed a bill Friday that lets the governor determine the countries whose residents, governments and other entities could be banned from buying property here. https://t.co/F2s88rTTas
