The package’s goals include a sale from Chinese funds and a ban on CCP-related companies that own or lease real estate near critical infrastructure.
On February 26th, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders released a series of bills aimed at the influence of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the state.
Some of the packages, known as the Communist Chinese Defense Legislative Packaging, were introduced in January and February.
If the bill becomes law, state-backed universities, as well as retirement and pension funds, would be banned from investing in Chinese funds. Government agencies will be prohibited from using state funds to purchase promotional products made in China. Additionally, the establishment of sister cities in China is prohibited.
State-run universities are prohibited from accessing public funds when hosting the Confucius Institute or other similar Chinese Institutes.
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Describing communist China as “America’s biggest enemy,” Sen. Blake Johnson, the law’s chief sponsor, said “a proud Arkansas leads the way in which it pushes back the enemy and puts America first.”
“This law protects farmers, our businesses and national security,” he said.
Another lead sponsor of the package, Senator Deann Vaught said:
Other lead sponsors include state officials Britt Mackenzie, Mindy McCallingdon and Howard M. Beatty Jr.
The Confucius Institute is a Chinese state-sponsored organization that runs Mandarin courses and promotes cultural events overseas. They have been accused of censoring speeches, discriminating against Chinese ethnic minorities, breeding communist ideologies, and exerting excessive influence on host institutions outside of China.
Arkansas’ legislative package came as Washington was looking for a way to curb China’s purchase of American farmland.
Before becoming an agricultural secretary, Rollins was the president and CEO of the American First Policy Institute. It supports state-level laws banning control of American farmland China.
