DeSantis prohibits CCP from buying or owning farmland, influencing education

On Monday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed three bills aiming to counteract the influence of the Chinese Communist Party on the state.

"Florida is taking action to stand against the United States’ greatest geopolitical threat — the Chinese Communist Party," said Governor Ron DeSantis in a press release. "I’m proud to sign this legislation to stop the purchase of our farmland and land near our military bases and critical infrastructure by Chinese agents, to stop sensitive digital data from being stored in China, and to stop CCP influence in our education system from grade school to grad school. We are following through on our commitment to crack down on Communist China." 

Senate Bill 264 prohibits government entities from Extending or renewing contracts beginning in July of 2025 with an entity owned by or has a controlling interest by the government of a foreign country of concern, including China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and others, or if the business has a primary place of business in these countries of concern.

The bill also prohibits government entities from entering into, bidding on, or renewing contracts with an entity that would grant such an entity access to people’s personal identifying information unless the company can provide an affidavit showing that it isn’t owned or invested in by a foreign country of concern.

SB 264 also bans foreign countries of concern, including China, from directly or indirectly owning agricultural land in the state of Florida.

DeSantis also signed SB 846 into law, which prohibits state agencies and public schools from receiving any grant from a foreign country of concern that "constrains the freedom of contract of such public entity," allows the curriculum or values of the program to be controlled by a foreign country of concern, or promotes "an agenda detrimental to the safety or security of the United States or its residents."

SB 258 prohibits the use of applications maintained by people associated with foreign countries of concern that gather information like sensitive personal, financial, proprietary, or other business data, conduct surveillance and tracking of users, and use algorithms to conduct disinformation or misinformation campaigns on government-issued devices. 

The signings come as DeSantis is poised to launch his presidential campaign in June, foregoing the deployment of an exploratory campaign. He previously made an international tour to build economic relations between Florida and countries like Britain, Japan, and South Korea.