(AUSTIN, TX) — Senator Lois W. Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) has passed Senate Bill 17 (The Adversarial Land Ownership Act) out of the Senate with bipartisan support. The sweeping legislation addresses growing concerns by many about the foreign ownership of Texas property and its implications for national security. The act prevents entities and individuals of adversarial nations from controlling private land and natural resources in Texas, while ensuring those fleeing oppressive regimes can still find a home in Texas.

The bill prohibits foreign governmental entities, companies, and individuals from purchasing private property in Texas if they are from countries identified in the latest Annual Threat Assessment reports by the Director of National Intelligence. Currently, those countries are Russia, North Korea, Iran, and China. Using the Annual Threat Assessment allows for flexibility as foreign relations possibly change.

“As passed, SB 17 is the most comprehensive prohibition on adversarial control of land and natural resources in the US. This legislation will ensure that hostile nations do not control Texas’ most precious assets. This is a matter of national security. Texas must act now to protect our land, food sources, water, and natural resources,” said Senator Kolkhorst.

On a 24-7 margin, SB 17 passed the Senate this week and is now being considered in the House. According to the Congressional Research Service, between 2023 and 2024 there have been 22 states which have enacted laws to regulate foreign-owned land.

Building on past efforts, SB 17 is a follow-up bill to SB 147 from the last session that passed the Senate in 2023 but failed to pass the Texas House.

In an evening debate on March 19, Kolkhorst said, “This legislation is different, better, and more constitutionally sound and predicated on national security issues. In the interim, I asked my staff to work with the best legal minds to craft a constitutionally sound but strict bill to protect Texas. We must act now to protect our land, food supply, water, and natural resources.”

During her bill presentation, Kolkhorst said her office sought the advice of Attorney General Paxton’s Solicitor General’s office. Based on case law, including a similar Florida bill, some changes were made from last session’s similar SB 147.

“It is common sense and good state policy to prohibit our foreign adversaries from purchasing Texas land,” said Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick after the bill passed. “Preventing private property from being sold to entities from adversarial nations is a basic tenet of national security. Many Texans have been increasingly concerned by this growing practice over the last few years. I thank Sen. Kolkhorst for her continued leadership on this essential state and national security issue.”

Kolkhorst said that the Attorney General will oversee the enforcement of this legislation, with the authority to investigate potential violations and initiate divestment proceedings against prohibited entities. If passed by the Texas House, SB 17 prohibits the purchase of Texas real property by corporations and individuals of hostile foreign nations—and specifically includes agricultural land, commercial or industrial property, water rights, rare earth materials, groundwater, timber, and oil and gas.

The bill was prompted by years of public outcry after a Chinese company with connections to the Chinese Communist Party purchased 140,000 acres near Laughlin Air Force Base in Val Verde County.

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