(NewsNation) – Chinese national Chen Tianqiao has made headlines in America after several media outlets reported that he is one of the largest landowners in the United States.

Accordingly The land reportIn the list of largest individual landowners, Chen ranks 82nd. This makes him the second largest foreign investor in US farmland.

Chen Tianqiao’s land purchase

Chen, a billionaire and co-founder of Shanda Interactive Entertainment, purchased nearly 200,000 acres of forest land in Oregon in 2015, although that purchase remained under the radar until it was revealed by tax records in recent weeks. In total, the land in Oregon cost Chen about $85 million, or $430 per acre.

The Daily Mail reports that his name does not appear in government records of agricultural land ownership by foreign investors, even though the U.S. Department of Agriculture is supposed to track foreign purchases.

This has sparked outrage from a number of lawmakers, including Congressman Jon Tester of Montana, who wrote a letter to the Departments of Agriculture and Treasury seeking answers.

According to the Daily Mail, Chen, 50, has held leadership positions in organizations affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party and owns a $39 million mansion in Manhattan and a $25 million estate in Los Angeles. This is what Chinese media write Chen joined the CCP when he was 18.

Political reaction

Tester, in his letter to federal officials, said the situation underscores the need for Congress to do more to protect the security of American agriculture. The Democrat emphasized that the USDA and Treasury must “prevent our foreign adversaries from controlling our nation’s food supply while gaining access to land near sensitive military sites.”

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-NY, said officials dropped the ball.

“Food security is national security. We cannot protect our agricultural land from foreign adversaries if we do not know they are buying it,” she said in an interview with The Daily Mail.

Some members of Congress have even tried it Limit who can own American farmland.

legality

There is currently no federal law prohibiting foreign businessmen, even from U.S. adversaries such as Russia and China, from entering the U.S. and purchasing U.S. farmland.

Larry Van Tassell, a Professor and Director of the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincolnwrote last October that foreign investors are not allowed to participate in certain disaster relief programs but can take advantage of most agricultural programs if they meet general criteria.

This criterion according to the Foreign Agricultural Investment Disclosure Act of 1978This also includes submitting an operational report to the Minister of Agriculture. Foreign persons who subsequently acquire or transfer an interest in agricultural land must report the transactions within 90 days of the acquisition.

“Furthermore, any foreign person who owns land that later becomes or ceases to be agricultural land, or any person who owns agricultural land and later becomes or ceases to be foreign person, must, within 90 days of such change submit a report. “The law says.

The information contained in the report must include: the person’s legal name; Address; Nationality or legal entity, if not an individual; intended use of the property; including the purchase price and the type of rental agreement. Failure to comply with AFIDA may result in civil penalties of up to 25% of the market value of the shares in the acquired property.

How much US land is owned by foreign companies?

Reuters reported last December that the number of U.S. farmland owned by foreign companies rose more than 8%. However, the 43.4 million acres of foreign-owned forest and farmland represent only 3.4% of the nation’s privately held agricultural land and nearly 2% of all land in the United States

Canada, says a report from the US Department of Agricultureis the largest foreign investor in the United States with 32% of the area. Much of it, Reuters wrote, is forests in Maine. China now accounts for less than 1% of foreign-owned hectares. In 2022 there were 350,000, which is actually a slight decrease from 2021.

NewsNation digital producer Cassie Buchman and Reuters contributed to this story.