Last week, three U.S. Senators proposed legislation that would give CFIUS “full authority” to review both greenfield and brownfield investments from China and other countries of concern. The bill follows the release of a Presidential memorandum that called for CFIUS to be granted similar powers.
As expected, a group of Senators has proposed legislation that would limit U.S. investments in certain technologies in China, including AI, advanced semiconductors, quantum systems, and hypersonics. The bill is one of several recent moves aimed at strengthening the outbound program.
Two legislative proposals have been introduced in the House and Senate that would impact foreign purchases of agricultural land in the U.S. The bills, which get added to a group of more than a dozen related proposals, take slightly different approaches to regulating foreign acquisition of farmland.
Two Republican Congressman have introduced a bill that would require public companies with “meaningful” exposure to China to report what percentage of their revenue, profit, and supply chain is tied to the country. The bill would also impose a number of additional new disclosures. Details inside.
Last week, three U.S. Representatives proposed a bill that would increase Congressional oversight of CFIUS, and would “help identify loopholes that fall outside the jurisdiction of CFIUS.” The bill would require CFIUS to notify Congress why a transaction was not reviewed. Details, context, impact inside.
Well, that didn’t take long. Fresh on the heels of a GAO report about flawed data regarding foreign agricultural transactions in the U.S., a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders have proposed a bill that would improve the tracking of foreign investment in farmland. Details, draft inside.
Setting aside the new Executive Order on outbound foreign investment, the U.S. Senate has approved an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act to add mandatory notification of certain investments in adversarial nations such as China. Details and the amendment are inside.
Congressional leaders have just proposed a bill that would include a “presumption of non-resolvability” by CFIUS related to real estate transactions by foreign adversaries near sensitive sites. In other words, the Committee would have to assume that any national security concerns cannot be resolved.
A proposed provision in the bipartisan Intelligence Authorization Act would extend CFIUS’s real-estate jurisdiction beyond military bases. The proposal would add foreign real-estate transactions in close proximity to “sensitive sites,” such as intelligence agencies and national labs. Details inside.
Three U.S. Senators have unveiled a bill that would prominently display in app stores the country where the apps are developed and owned. The bill would also require the Treasury and Commerce departments to catalog adversarial governments that may have access to user data. Details inside.
Last week, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced legislation that would address the “ongoing threat” posed by technology from foreign adversaries. The legislation would impact how the U.S. addresses technology risks, but experts warn it could yield jurisdictional conflict with CFIUS.
Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.), who was just selected to chair the House Select Committee on China, has proposed a bill that would force non-profits, university endowments, public pension plans, and other tax-exempt entities to divest from Chinese companies or lose their tax-exempt status.
A national security screening mechanism for outbound investments was conspicuously absent from the $280 billion semiconductor bill passed by Congress last week. But the bill did include several outbound “guardrails,” and experts say the doors to an “outbound CFIUS” are still wide open.
A bill proposed to strengthen U.S. supply chains and domestic production capacity would formally have the Assistant Secretary for Trade and Economic Security at the Department of Homeland Security serve as the “point person” on CFIUS and Team Telecom. Details inside.
Several U.S. Congressmen have floated a bill that would prohibit foreign nationals from purchasing land in the U.S. While acknowledging CFIUS has jurisdiction over certain real estate deals, they say “more action is needed” to make the rules more strict. Details and context are inside.
A well-respected law school professor has published an essay that explores the overlap of state laws and CFIUS. The essay explores whether state and local officials should have a mechanism for channeling concerns and local knowledge into the CFIUS process. Details inside.
Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has proposed a bill focused on countering Chinese influence in the space industry. But experts say a beneficial-ownership disclosure requirement included in the legislation could have impact far beyond just that sector. Details, context, and the bill are inside.
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission has published its 2021 report to Congress, and the 44-page document includes recommendations that would impact FIRRMA, CFIUS, export controls, and more. Details and the complete USCC report are inside.
Two U.S. Senators have floated a bill that would expand CFIUS oversight of transactions involving sensitive personal data, from geolocation information to genetic test results. Might sound familiar if you’ve heard of “TID” businesses. Details, context, and overlap with TID is inside.
A Republican Congressman from Wisconsin is preparing legislation that would create a new disclosure requirement for companies that are subsidized by foreign governments. The bill would impact those entities when pursuing large mergers. Details inside.