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S. 886 · Where this bill is now

In committee

Introduced in the Senate, Mar 6, 2025

What this bill does

In plain words · AI-written from the official summary

Tightens oversight of foreign agricultural land purchases

The bill gives federal regulators more power to review and scrutinize when foreign investors buy large amounts of U.S. agricultural land. Specifically, it expands a government committee called CFIUS to examine land deals over $5 million or 320 acres that involve agriculture, energy extraction, or materials for technology and defense. The bill also beefs up enforcement of existing rules that require disclosure of foreign agricultural investments and creates a federal database to track which agricultural land is owned by foreign entities.

How it affects you

If you're a U.S. farmer or own agricultural land, this bill could affect you indirectly by influencing who can buy farmland in your region and what oversight applies to those purchases. Foreign landowners would be barred from participating in certain Farm Service Agency programs that provide support to farmers. For most Americans, this bill doesn't create direct personal changes, but it aims to shape the landscape of agricultural land ownership.

Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Mar 6, 2025)

Foreign Agricultural Restrictions to Maintain Local Agriculture and National Defense Act of 2025 or the FARMLAND Act of 2025

This bill expands federal authority and oversight over foreign investments in the U.S. agricultural industry.

The bill expands the authority of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to include the review of land transactions (involving foreign entities) that exceed $5 million or 320 acres of land over the preceding three years. This applies to land that is primarily used for agriculture, the extraction of energy sources, or the extraction of critical precursor materials for biological technology industries, information technology components, or national defense technologies. Further, the bill adds the Secretary of Agriculture and the Commissioner of Food and Drugs to CFIUS membership. As background, CFIUS is an interagency committee that oversees the national security risks of certain foreign direct investment in the U.S. economy, including by reviewing certain real estate transactions.

Further, the bill expands enforcement of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA). The Department of Agriculture (USDA) must appoint a Chief of Operations of Investigative Actions to (1) monitor AFIDA compliance, and (2) conduct investigations on efforts to steal agricultural knowledge and technology and to disrupt the U.S. agricultural base.

The bill prohibits foreign persons who own or operate land from participating in Farm Service Agency programs and establishes penalties for violators.

The bill also requires USDA and the Department of Homeland Security to jointly develop a database of agricultural land owned by foreign persons.

Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.

119th Congress
1st SessionS. 886

A BILL

FARMLAND Act of 2025

In the SenateNo vote yet

Sponsor: Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) · Introduced Mar 6, 2025 · Agriculture and Food · 1 version of the text

Read the full billOfficial record on Congress.gov ↗

Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Mar 6, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.”

Sections

Sections · 8