Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly gives her inaugural address for her second four-year term on the south steps of the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan., on Jan. 9, 2023. (John Hanna/AP Photo)
Posted on 05/12/2024 6:41:25 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a bill on Friday that aimed to prevent companies of China and other “foreign adversaries” from acquiring real property near military installations in the state.
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly gives her inaugural address for her second four-year term on the south steps of the Statehouse in Topeka, Kan., on Jan. 9, 2023. (John Hanna/AP Photo)
Senate Bill 172 aims to block individuals or companies from “countries of concern” from owning any interest in land located within a 100-mile radius of a military installation in Kansas.
Under the bill, any foreign principal that owns or acquires any interest in real property in Kansas would be required to file registration with the attorney general and divest of the property.
The Democratic governor has vetoed the proposed legislation, saying that the bill contains provisions that are “overly broad” and “not narrowly tailored” to protect the state from foreign adversaries.
“While I agree that it is important for our state to implement stronger protections against foreign adversaries, this legislation contains multiple provisions that are likely unconstitutional and cause unintended consequences,” Ms. Kelly said in a statement.
“Additionally, the retroactive nature of this legislation raises further serious constitutional concerns,” she added.
Ms. Kelly said the legislature should consider proposals that protect Kansas from “bad actors” without affecting the state’s legitimate business relationships with potential trading partners and small businesses.
“I am not willing to sign a bill that has the potential to hurt the state’s future prosperity and economic development,” the governor stated.
According to a report by Kansas State University, foreign investors from China own a single acre of privately held agricultural land in the state. China is among the countries listed as U.S. foreign adversaries.
As of 2021, China ranked as the third-largest export market for Kansas, trailing behind Mexico and Canada, according to a Kansas Export Statistics Executive Summary.
Kansas Republicans have criticized Ms. Kelly’s decision to veto the bill. House Speaker Dan Hawkins, Majority Leader Chris Croft, and Speaker Pro Tempore Blake Carpenter issued a joint statement saying that the governor is putting military installations in Kansas at risk.
“Foreign adversaries, such as China, have made their intentions toward the U.S. and our democracy abundantly clear,” Mr. Hawkins said in the statement.
“It’s shameful that our governor has chosen not to take those threats seriously, leaving Kansas’ critical infrastructure and military installments exposed,” he added.
Mr. Croft described the governor’s veto as “beyond disappointing,” saying that it leaves the state’s military bases and other critical infrastructure “wide open for adversarial foreign governments.”
“The assets of this state are too important for us to sit on our hands and wait until it’s too late,” he stated. “This bill was carefully designed with input from everyone who wanted a say on how we should move forward.”
Mr. Carpenter said he remains committed to protecting the military installations in Kansas and “ensuring that the Chinese Communist Party and other foreign adversaries do not compromise Kansas’s safety.”
Similar legislation has been introduced in several states, including Georgia, Iowa, Utah, and Oklahoma. The South Carolina Senate passed a bill in March that will partly ban companies or citizens of foreign adversaries from acquiring real property in the state.
Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition aimed at ending discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, has condemned the measure and said it could stoke “xenophobia” among Asian American communities.
“These land ban laws label our communities as untrustworthy, blame them for the actions of another country’s government, and stoke the flames of racism, xenophobia, and hate,” Cynthia Choi, co-founder of Stop AAPI Hate, said in a statement after Georgia’s passage of the bill.
As of December 2021, China accounted for 383,935 acres of the 40 million acres of U.S. agricultural land owned by foreign investors, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
While the acreage under Chinese ownership is slightly less than 1 percent of all foreign-held agricultural land, it represents a nearly 30-fold leap from 13,720 acres in 2010, according to a U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission report.
Caden Pearson contributed to this report.
Kansas has a history of electing rat Governors despite being a mostly red state. Abortion is a part of it.
Don’t forget too the RINOs/Democrats funded Dennis Pyle to run to the right of Derek Schmidt as an independent. He got 5% of the vote. Kelly won by less than 3%.
(Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed a bill on Friday that aimed to prevent companies of China and other “foreign adversaries” from acquiring real property near military installations in the state.)
Seems like the Democratic Party is a wholly-owned subsidiary of China.
Manchurian Global were the ones behind
the Manchurian Candidate Sleeper Agent
aimed towards the White House in
“The Manchurian Candidate” (2004)
Kanas violated my #1 Rule!! Never!! Ever!! Vote for a Democrat!! Never!l
My God. The more I hear of what this lady is doing, the more I’m disappointed. I was thinking of relocating to Kansas as a retirement location. As long as she’s in power, no way. Plus she’s a disgrace to the Kelly name.
Way I hear it, most of Kansas is conservative, but the population centers always vote for the Rats, and that’s how she got voted in.
My question now is whether there will be enough votes to override her veto.
She tried to coast on her good looks but now is exposing her bad politics.
By the way, yes, I was in the hot sun for quite a long time today, why do you ask?
Chinese in land adjacent to a US military base. What could go wrong?
“No Governor’s race this year. She’s free. Kansas is red so why a rat governor. How did Brownback fail so miserably?”
Stabbed in the back by RINOs. Kansas may be very red, but its RINO red. Two Republicans split the vote in 2022. Kelly won a plurality.
Another CCP mole in America’s government revealed.
How can this wench supercede National Security?
*Two Republicans split the vote in 2022. Kelly won a plurality.*
My friends they got us then. it took out Sarah. All they need is one Manchurian republican.
Women should never have been given the right to vote. They don’t take politics seriously. To them, politics is like changing a diaper.
Looks like Janet Reno’s daughter.
She's term limited so her political career is over in KS.
JMO...
Why, oh why does KANSAS keep electing far-left Democrats? It’s not like they’re New Jersey or California....
Duly bought and paid for with OUR own money....................
They’ve learned very well how to play the game for money
Another owned Governor they must come cheap and easy.
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