Bipartisan Florida bill to ban Chinese citizens from owning property
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The legislation, backed by members of both Republican and Democratic parties, will prohibit Chinese nationals from owning property unless they have US citizenship.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a book tour visit at Adventure Outdoors gun shop in Smyrna, Georgia, US, March 30, 2023. (Reuters)
A suggested Florida ban on Chinese citizens from owning property that is being backed by bipartisan politicians, including controversial far-right Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, has caused turmoil in the state over racial discrimination and even law violation.
The legislation, backed by Republican and some Democratic lawmakers, makes an exception for Chinese who also hold US citizenship or have permanent residency.
Advocates of the law argue that it serves national security, while opponents are calling it a discriminatory measure and could potentially violate the 1968 Fair Housing Act.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis grew to become a prominent Republican figure in the last few years, with polls indicating that he is the second most popular politician in the party just after US former President Donald Trump. This suggests that the fallout of this bill will not be limited to Florida but would become a nationwide concern.
SB 264: Interests of Foreign Countries - the title of the ownership ban bill - was passed by the Florida House earlier this week by a sweeping 95-17, and will now make its way to the Senate for a unanimous vote.
While the law would also prohibit Citizens of Russia, Iran, Syria, Cuba, Venezuela, and North Korea from acquiring land within 1.6 kilometers of any critical infrastructure, only Chinese nationals are subjected to a full ban statewide.
Congress has earlier expressed concern over increasing farmland ownership by Chinese citizens nationwide. A bill was introduced at both national and state levels, which would restrict selling agricultural land to countries considered hostile to the US.
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Democratic state Representative Fentrice Driskell shed doubt on Wednesday over the constitutionality of the legislation and asked, "Who is going to enforce this? Realtors? Come on. We are better than this."
On the other hand, Democrats such as state Rep. Katherine Waldron were co-sponsors of the support of the bill.
"Do not be intimidated by the vocal and aggressive actors we've seen in the past few weeks, who do not have our country's best interests in mind. The communist threat to our nation is real," she said.
DeSantis has previously claimed that China is actively "gobbling up land," in the "Western hemisphere."
He has previously said that the state doesn't want to provide financial holdings to "hostile nations."
"That is not in the best interests of Florida to have the Chinese Communist Party owning farmland, owning land close to military bases," he said in January.
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