Sen. Cruz Issues Statement on Expansion of CFIUS Jurisdiction to Prevent Chinese Communist Party Surveillance of U.S. Military Bases

SAN ANTONIO, Texas – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement regarding an announcement that the Department of the Treasury intends to expand the power of the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to review certain real estate investments by foreign entities. The announcement will help protect 59 additional military bases, including three in Texas.

Sen. Cruz said, “I am deeply concerned by the growing espionage threat to our military installations posed by our adversaries, particularly the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). These adversaries have increasingly been linked to real estate purchases near sensitive installations. The Department of the Treasury’s proposal is a step in the right direction and will strengthen protections for U.S. military bases, including those in Texas. However, the new rule does not address the full scope of the espionage threats posed by the CCP and other adversaries and more must be done. My bill, the Protecting Military Installations and Ranges Act, will give CFIUS jurisdiction to review real estate investments by the CCP, Russia, Iran, or North Korea within 100 miles of any Department of Defense installation in the U.S. I urge my colleagues to take up this legislation and pass it swiftly.”

BACKGROUND:

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has jurisdiction to review certain real estate investments by foreign entities within –

(1) 1 mile of military installations listed in 31 CFR 802, Appendix A, Part 1, or

(2) 100 miles of military installations listed in 31 CFR 802, Appendix A, Part 2

The rule would improve protections for four Texas military installations -

• Moving Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA) from Appendix A, Part 1 (1-mile jurisdiction) to Part 2 (100-mile jurisdiction),
• Adding Goodfellow Air Force Base (San Angelo, TX) to Part 2 (100-mile jurisdiction), and
• Adding Naval Air Station Corpus Christi and Red River Army Depot (Texarkana, TX) to Part 1 (1-mile jurisdiction)

Sen. Cruz believes that China is the “single greatest geopolitical threat of our time.” He has worked ceaselessly to advance the cause and cases of dissidents. He has also filed and advanced over a dozen pieces of legislation countering Chinese aggression.

• In March 2024, Sen. Cruz condemned the CCP’s tightening of influence over Hong Kong, and persistent attempts to erode their freedom and autonomy.
• In December 2023, Sen. Cruz called for the immediate release of Jimmy Lai, a dissident and the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, who is being unjustly detained by the Chinese Communist Party and subjected to an illegitimate trial without his choice of legal representation.
• In February 2023, Sen. Cruz introduced the Protecting Military Installations and Ranges Act to restrict foreign nationals from—or those working on behalf of—Russia, China, Iran, or North Korea.
• In April 2020, Sen. Cruz worked to hold the CCP accountable for the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In 2019, Sen. Cruz introduced the Hong Kong Policy Reevaluation Act of 2019, which requires the State Department to report on whether China was eroding Hong Kong's autonomy, and to alter U.S. policy if it was. A version of the bill was signed into law in November 2019 as part of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.
• In 2019, as part of his Indo-Pacific ‘Friends and Allies' tour, Sen. Cruz met with pro-democracy activists, dissidents, and protest leaders in Hong Kong and expressed his support for those fighting to protect Hong Kong's autonomy, free speech, and basic human rights.
• Sen. Cruz has called for a fundamental reassessment of the U.S.-China relationship, and has introduced numerous bills to unwind the United States from China. Read more about Sen. Cruz's comprehensive push to reassess the United States' relationship with China here.

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