State Policy Solutions

Protect U.S. Agriculture, Farmland, & Food Supply

Food security is national security. States must pass legislative proposals to prohibit Chinese accumulation of U.S. farmland and remove preferences for the treatment of foreign food products.

  • Foreign nationals have no Constitutional right to own American farmland in any state. As the matter is adjudicated in courts, states should proactively enact laws to protect their critical agricultural land from Chinese control.

  • If American manufacturers of agricultural products are subject to regulations that the Chinese are not, it gives China an unfair market advantage and opens the door for outsourcing. States must pass protections for US agriculture companies that are going to make their products here in America Instead of outsourcing production to China.

  • State governments spend millions through their Departments of Agriculture to help farmers. Taxpayer money should not go to China. These changes should be phased into effect in order to protect farm jobs.

  • Current law includes reviews of land purchases around sensitive areas. States should establish reviews for the foreign purchase of any land, especially land purchased by an American adversary. 

Defend American Political Independence

China tries to control lawmaking in the U.S. State legislatures should safeguard American political independence and elections. They must block Chinese influence and require disclosure in lobbying. 

  • Anyone who lobbies on China’s behalf in a state must be known and must have their intentions clearly known. States should ensure that foreign lobbying is transparent and that covert operations are not tolerated. 

  • Some states have already introduced and passed legislation to combat foreign influence companies from making campaign contributions. In order to keep Chinese money out of American elections, every state should follow suit.

  • There are multiple examples of China changing legislative outcomes in states. It has also reportedly collected personal information on and targeted up-and-coming local politicians. Officials should be required to report any contact with Chinese-influenced officials to a state database to ensure transparency.

Promote American Jobs and Protect American Industry

The American people have seen the critical importance of domestic manufacturing. Shortages of goods and supply chain issues during the COVID-19 pandemic underlined the importance of protecting and growing America’s supply chain. State policies can play a critical role in promoting American-owned industries over our adversaries.

  • In 2023, Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin removed his state from consideration for a new battery plant that would have been a joint venture between Ford and Chinese company CATL. Other states should follow Youngkin’s lead and reject subsidies to Chinese companies.

  • States should pass preferences for U.S. companies. In order to promote domestic industry, legislatures must prioritize liability protections, regulatory relief, and economic assistance that only goes to U.S. firms.

  • Chinese corporate espionage agents attack U.S. companies to steal and duplicate intellectual property. States must work with domestic companies to identify attacks. States should sanction bad actors while promoting and curating databases to alert businesses to threats against them. 

  • Every state should have robust criminal penalties on the books to expel and punish IP theft and attacks on American companies. 

Keep China Out of Our Infrastructure

Foreign equipment and products have become a key part of U.S. infrastructure, from construction projects to our energy power grid. The result is a dangerous dependence on China. States can begin to reverse this trend and safeguard our infrastructure.

  • Step one in protecting infrastructure is to stop relying on Chinese companies. Every state should immediately adopt a ban against local governments contracting with entities from China or controlled by the CCP.

  • State-funded infrastructure projects are an opportunity to prioritize and restore domestic supply chains. Construction, energy, and technology infrastructure should use components made in the USA.

  • China has already supplied key components for our power grid. This provides our adversaries with physical backdoors into our critical infrastructure. States must stop using risky Chinese-made components in our power grid. This dangerous practice only makes it easier to disrupt a critical industry and harder to guard against outside threats.

  • China’s cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure are now at an all time high and threaten every American citizen and community. Legislatures should begin the process of decoupling from China by banning taxpayer dollars from buying or using Chinese tech for any government operations.

Maintain Independence in Education

It has long been known that state-funded colleges and universities are “soft targets” for Chinese attempts to steal intellectual property (IP). They are also at the forefront of the CCP’s propaganda efforts in America. States must take action to protect government-funded schools from China’s attacks.

  • Institutions of higher learning that receive state funding should be required to proactively disclose any and all relationships with China. 

  • China is actively working to steal IP from America’s research universities. State legislatures should make the availability of research dollars contingent on the production of viable plans to stop IP theft.

  • China recruits foreign professors with expertise in science and technology to work with Chinese proxies through the “Thousand Talents Program.” States should explicitly ban institutions that receive taxpayer dollars from participating.

  • The CCP’s influence strategy is not limited to institutions of higher learning. The Communist Party is also focused on shaping K-12 education. States must proactively ban any foreign funding of K-12 schools to stop this pernicious threat. 

Stop The Flow of Chinese Nationals & Fentanyl Across Our Border to Safeguard American Lives

The danger of China’s presence in states is not just theoretical. Americans are losing their lives every day because of Chinese activity in the U.S. It is past time that state leaders take action to punish the culprits and disincentivize illegal entry into the country.

  • The Chinese government is actively subsidizing the production of fentanyl and killing Americans. States are the frontlines of this war. State and local governments can start defending citizens by ensuring stiff penalties for fentanyl trafficking. 

  • China uses the porous U.S. border to smuggle dangerous people and products into America. To disincentive illegal entry, states should work to eliminate taxpayer-funded benefits for people in the U.S. illegally.

  • E-verify is the most effective way for employers to determine whether workers are in America legally. Today, only 22 states require the use of E-verify, and some only require it for public employees. All state legislatures must require E-verify in order to identify ineligible workers.

  • Many states still issue driver's licenses to individuals who are in the country illegally. This incentivizes illegal activity and encourages human trafficking from countries like China. All states must prohibit the issuance of IDs to unlawful entrants.

  • The Chinese are active in human trafficking that is often conducted in connection with the illicit drug trade. Some states are joining the fight by passing tough anti human smuggling laws. These laws must be replicated and enforced.

  • The federal government has failed to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs like fentanyl from China into the country. States have the ability to step up where the federal government has failed. States must draft and approve laws establishing penalties for impermissible occupation in order to fight human trafficking.