The Kansas State Legislature passed a bill Tuesday that would ban companies from China and other hostile countries from purchasing land near military sites.
The state House of Representatives passed SB172 by a vote of 86-39 on Monday, and the state Senate passed the bill by a vote of 24-14 on Tuesday. according to To the Kansas City Star. The bill is in part a response to efforts by Cnano Technology USA, a subsidiary of a Chinese company, that plans to invest in a large factory in the state.
The Daily Caller News Foundation first reported that Cnano Technology USA’s parent company has extensive ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This research was supported by research conducted by the Heritage Foundation Monitoring Project and Heritage Action.
The bill is now on the desk of Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
With rare exceptions, if this bill becomes state law, it would prohibit citizens and companies (or subsidiaries) of China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, and North Korea from purchasing nonresidential land within 100 miles of military land. It will be prohibited. (Related: ‘Infiltration and influence’: Republican lawmaker asks former CIA official about dangers of Chinese-owned factories in America’s heartland)
clock:@RepLaTurner Asked @PLMatis If U.S. subsidiaries of Chinese companies like Cnano USA could “completely divorce”
“No company I know has such a close relationship with the party-state and its objectives that it can be considered separate.” – Mattis pic.twitter.com/J6P1NUbXT3
— Philip Lenczycki Cai Yue (@LenczyckiPhilip) April 17, 2024
Cnano Technology USA plans to build a large facility in Johnson County, Kansas, to produce parts for electric vehicle batteries and other products within about 55 miles of the county. Fort Leavenworth70 miles from whiteman air force base.
Cnano USA is a subsidiary of C-Nano Technology Co., Ltd., a British Virgin Islands company established by China-based Cnano Jiangsu Technology Co., Ltd. according to To Cnano Jiangsu’s 2022 Annual Report.
Cnano Jiangsu’s 2022 Social Responsibility Report states that the company employs dozens of Chinese Communist Party members. Also, on the company’s English website, To tell The company said it has implemented “a number of national 863” initiatives, a reference to the Chinese government-backed program that the United States has accused of trying to steal American technology.
Other company documents reviewed by DCNF revealed that the number of CCP members working at Cnano Jiangsu has increased in recent years, and that the company clearly promotes CCP ideology.
“Ask yourself: Could Americans buy land near military bases in China? Of course the answer is no,” Mike Gallagher, then chairman of the China Communist Party Select Committee, previously said. told DCNF. “Forcing the Chinese Communist Party or Chinese Communist Party affiliates to buy land near U.S. military bases is definitely a bad idea. I can’t let that happen.”
Representatives for Cnano Technology USA and its Chinese parent company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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