Image Credit: TN General Assembly
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
A bill that would require all foreign purchases of land in Tennessee to be reported to the Commissioner of Agriculture, with failure to report resulting in a civil penalty of 25% of the property’s value, passed in the House Cities and Counties Subcommittee on Wednesday.
The vote was 5 to 0. Two members of the subcommittee were not present.
The bill now advances to the House State and Local Government Committee and will be heard on March 5th, 2025.
Sponsored by Representative Jay Reedy (R-Erin-District 74), House Bill 0219 (HB0219) would require that in addition to filing a report of a purchase with the United States Department of Agriculture, under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978, “foreign persons who purchase land in this state” must also file with the Tennessee Commissioner of Agriculture at the same time.
The Commissioner would be charged with notifying the Tennessee Attorney General of any noncompliance who in turn would be authorized to impose a penalty of up to a quarter of the land’s fair market value.
Reedy sponsored legislation in 2023 prohibiting the ownership of property by foreign individuals or entities who reside in countries that are sanctioned by the United States government.
Contact information for members of the House State and Local Government Committee can be found below.
Rep.john.crawford@capitol.tn.gov, rep.dave.wright@capitol.tn.gov, rep.rush.bricken@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jeff.burkhart@capitol.tn.gov, rep.ed.butler@capitol.tn.gov, rep.michele.carringer@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jesse.chism@capitol.tn.gov, rep.vincent.dixie@capitol.tn.gov, rep.rick.eldridge@capitol.tn.gov, rep.dan.howell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.tom.leatherwood@capitol.tn.gov, rep.mary.littleton@capitol.tn.gov, rep.greg.martin@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jake.mccalmon@capitol.tn.gov, rep.larry.miller@capitol.tn.gov, rep.bo.mitchell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jerome.moon@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jason.powell@capitol.tn.gov, rep.dennis.powers@capitol.tn.gov, rep.tim.rudd@capitol.tn.gov, rep.iris.rudder@capitol.tn.gov, rep.gabby.salinas@capitol.tn.gov, rep.todd.warner@capitol.tn.gov
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
