Gov. Kristi Noem is endorsing a months-old U.S. House proposal to prohibit six foreign governments and entities from purchasing U.S. ag land.
She wants it included in the National Defense Authorization Act. This comes as two members of South Dakota’s congressional delegation are already working on the issue.
As Congress returns from the Thanksgiving break, both chambers are expected to work out differences between defense spending packages. Both chambers have included provisions that prohibit other countries from purchasing agriculture land in the U.S.
They want to prohibit officials and entities with China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from buying agriculture land in the US.
"As a lifelong farmer and rancher, I am particularly concerned about China infiltrating America’s food supply," Noem said in a letter to Rep. Mike Gallagher, sponsor of a provision to prohibit these purchases. "Food security is a matter of national security – I know that you agree."
In the letter, Noem said she appreciates the resolution, which was introduced in July.
“Importantly, this bill contains more protections for our agricultural land than the Senate amendment to the NDAA,” she said.
The letter contains a hyperlink to the Senate amendment, whose prime sponsor is South Dakota U.S. Senator and former governor Mike Rounds.
“We agree with Gov. Noem that a federal solution is required to tackle this problem," Rounds said in a statement. "The Senate, with a vote of 91-7, passed my amendment which bans China and other foreign adversaries from purchasing American farmland. We are hopeful that there is enough strength in the House to include this provision in the final version of NDAA.”
Republican Rep. Dusty Johnson has been working on similar legislation and is a co-sponsor on the proposal Noem is now supporting.
“I’m thankful for Gov. Noem’s leadership to prohibit the Chinese Communist Party threat in South Dakota and I’m proud to be a strong advocate for these efforts in Congress," Johnson said in a statement. "As a leader on Chairman Gallagher's bill, I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass legislation protecting our food security and rural communities.”
One of the differences in the two proposals is Gallagher’s includes the countries of Cuba and Venezuela. The governor’s office did specify what else lacks in Rounds’ Senate proposal.
"Gov. Noem appreciates Sen. Rounds’ focus on this crucial national security issue," Noem's spokesperson Ian Fury said in an email, pointing back to a line in her letter to Rep. Gallagher.
Both chambers have passed versions of the NDAA. Negotiations on the hill have stalled with a split Congress and a divided, narrow House Republican majority that ousted its speaker earlier this year.
Noem tried and failed to pass a bill last session that would allow her to approve or deny ag land purchases by, or contracts with, foreign entities in South Dakota. Nearly every agriculture organization in the state opposed the bill. They said the issue is better handled at the federal level.
Lawmakers, instead, passed a bill that lists six countries prohibited from doing business with the state.
“It is interesting that Gov. Noem’s press release links or directly refers to an amendment on another bill proposed by South Dakota’s junior Senator M. Michael Rounds,” said Michael Card, professor emeritus of political science at USD.
Card notes recent moves by the term-limited governor and her activities at the U.S. southern border and her stance on China might be part of a campaign to show international relations credentials.
“The play for these credentials which might be in support of higher office—competing for Sen. Rounds’ seat in 2026 which coincides with the end of Noem’s term in 2026, a possible vice-presidential candidacy in 2024, or a possible ambassadorship in a Trump administration.”
