MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2024 Regular Session
To: Agriculture
By: Representative Currie
AN ACT TO CREATE THE "MISSISSIPPI AGRICULTURAL LAND PROTECTION AND FOREIGN ACQUISITION PROHIBITION ACT" FOR THE PURPOSES OF PROHIBITING CERTAIN FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS AND NONRESIDENT ALIENS FROM PURCHASING, ACQUIRING, LEASING, OR HOLDING AN INTEREST IN AGRICULTURAL LAND WITHIN THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI; TO DEFINE TERMINOLOGY USED IN THE ACT; TO PROHIBIT ANY PARTY FROM HOLDING AGRICULTURAL LAND AS AN AGENT, TRUSTEE OR OTHER FIDUCIARY FOR A PROHIBITED FOREIGN PARTY; TO PROVIDE THAT A PROHIBITED FOREIGN PARTY WHO IS A RESIDENT ALIEN OF THE UNITED STATES IS ENTITLED TO ACQUIRE AND HOLD AGRICULTURAL LAND IN THE STATE AS A CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE DURATION OF HIS OR HER RESIDENCE IN THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, TO PROVIDE THAT NO SUCH RESIDENT ALIEN SHALL BE ENTITLED TO ACQUIRE A HOLD ON ANY AGRICULTURAL LAND WITHIN A RADIUS OF 100 MILES OF A UNITED STATES MILITARY INSTALLATION, AS PRESCRIBED IN THE REAL ESTATE REGULATIONS OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN INVESTMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES (CFIUS); TO REQUIRE A PROHIBITED FOREIGN PARTY TO DIVEST OF THE LAND HELD WITHIN TWO YEARS AFTER THEY ARE NO LONGER A RESIDENT ALIEN; TO AUTHORIZE THE ATTORNEY GENERAL TO COMMENCE A LEGAL ACTION AGAINST PROHIBITED FOREIGN PARTY OFFENDERS WHO FAIL TO DIVEST OF THE RESPECTIVE PROPERTY AN ACTION IN CIRCUIT COURT WITHIN THE JURISDICTION WHEREIN THE AGRICULTURAL LAND IS SITUATED; TO PRESCRIBE THE PROCESSES TO BE FOLLOWED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE'S OFFICE AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL WHEN IT HAS BEEN DETERMINED THAT A PROHIBITED FOREIGN PARTY HAS ACQUIRED AGRICULTURAL LAND IN VIOLATION OF THIS ACT; TO AMEND SECTIONS 89-1-23 AND 29-1-75, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY TO THE PRECEDING PROVISIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 7-3-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXPAND THE DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE WITH REGARD TO ENFORCING THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE AND COMMERCE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Mississippi Agricultural Land Protection and Foreign Acquisition Prohibition Act."
SECTION 2. As used in this act, the following terms shall have the meaning ascribed in this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
(a) "Agricultural land" means any land situated within the boundaries of the State of Mississippi which is located outside the corporate limits of a municipality, and which is:
(i) Used for forestry production, including, without limitation, land exceeding ten (10) acres in which ten percent (10%) of the land is stocked by trees of any size, including land that formerly had trees of any size covering the land which will be naturally or artificially regenerated;
(ii) Currently used for, or, if currently idle, last used within the past five (5) years, for farming, ranching or timber production, except land not exceeding ten (10) acres in the aggregate, if the annual gross receipts from the sale of the farm, ranch or timber products produced on the land do not exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000); or
(iii) Used for agricultural, forestry, or timber production purposes as determined by the United States Secretary of Agriculture under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary, as defined in 7 USCS Section 3508.
The term "agricultural land" does not include oil, gas, and all other minerals, including coal, lignite, brine and all minerals known and recognized as commercial minerals underlying the land.
(b) "Controlling interest" means either of the following:
(i) An interest of thirty-three percent (33%) or more held by:
1. A party referred to in paragraph (g)(iv) of this section;
2. An individual referred to in paragraph (g)(i) of this section;
3. A party referred to in paragraph (g)(iii) of this section; or
4. A single government referred to in paragraph (g)(ii) of this section;
(ii) An interest of thirty-three percent (33%) or more held whenever the parties, individuals or foreign governments referred to in paragraph (g) of this section are acting in concert with respect to the interest even though no single individual, party or foreign government holds an interest of thirty-three percent (33%) or more; or
(iii) An interest of fifty percent (50%) or more, in the aggregate, held by parties, individuals or governments referred to in paragraph (g) of this section even though the individuals, parties or foreign governments may not be acting in concert.
(c) "Department" means the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce.
(d) "Foreign government" means a government or the state-controlled enterprise of a foreign government, except the term "foreign government" does not include the government of the United States, its states, territories or possessions.
(e) "Interest" means any estate, remainder or reversion or portion of the estate, remainder or reversion, or an option pursuant to which one (1) party has a right to cause legal or equitable title to agricultural land to be transferred.
(f) "Interest in agricultural land" means all direct interest acquired, transferred, or held in agricultural land, including, without limitation, a lease of agricultural land:
(i) For a term of one (1) year or longer; or
(ii) Renewable by option for terms which, if the options were all exercised, would total one (1) year.
(g) "Prohibited foreign party" means:
(i) A citizen or resident of a country subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations, 22 CFR Section 126.1;
(ii) A foreign government formed within a country subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations, 22 CFR Section 126.1;
(iii) A party other than an individual or a government, that is created or organized under the laws of a foreign government within a country subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations, 22 CFR Section 126.1;
(iv) Any party other than an individual or a government:
1. That is created or organized under the laws of any state; and
2. In which a significant interest or substantial control is directly or indirectly held or is capable of being exercised by:
a. An individual referred to in paragraph (g)(i) of this section;
b. A foreign government referred to in paragraph (g)(ii) of this section;
c. A party referred to in paragraph (g)(iii) of this section; or
d. A combination of the individuals, parties, or governments referred to in paragraph (g)(iv)(2);
(v) An Entity of Particular Concern designated by the United States Department of State; or
(vi) An agent, trustee or other fiduciary of a person or entity enumerated in paragraph (g)(i) through (v) of this section.
(h) "Residence" means a person's principal dwelling place where the person intends to remain permanently for an indefinite period of time.
(i) "Resident alien" means a person who:
(i) Is not a citizen of the United States; and
(ii) Is a resident of a state, territory, trusteeship or protectorate of the United States.
(j) "State-controlled enterprise" means a business enterprise, however denominated, in which the government has a controlling interest.
SECTION 3. (1) (a) Except as provided in Section 4 of this act, a prohibited foreign party shall not acquire by grant, purchase, devise, descent or otherwise any interest in agricultural land in this state regardless of whether the prohibited foreign party intends to use the agricultural land for nonfarming purposes.
(b) A party may not hold agricultural land as an agent, trustee or other fiduciary for a prohibited foreign party in violation of this act.
(2) A prohibited foreign party that acquires agricultural land in violation of this act remains in violation as long as the prohibited foreign party holds an interest in the agricultural land.
SECTION 4. (1) A prohibited foreign party who is a resident alien of the United States shall have the right to acquire and hold agricultural land in the state upon the same terms as a citizen of the United States during the continuance of his or her residence in the State of Mississippi. However, no such resident alien shall be entitled to acquire a hold on any agricultural land in the state within a radius of one hundred (100) miles of a United States military installation as prescribed in the real estate regulations of the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) at 31 CFR Section 802.
(2) (a) If a prohibited foreign party is no longer a resident alien under subsection (1) of this section, he or she shall have two (2) years to divest of the agricultural land.
(b) If the prohibited foreign party does not divest of the agricultural land as required by paragraph (a) of this subsection, the Attorney General shall commence an action in circuit court within the jurisdiction wherein the agricultural land is situated.
(c) If the agricultural land is held in violation of this section, a quo warranto proceeding, under the authority of Section 11-39-1, the circuit court shall order that the agricultural land be sold through judicial foreclosure or that it escheats to the state in accordance with the provisions of Sections 29-1-75(2)(c) and 89-1-23.
(3) (a) When the Secretary of State determines a prohibited foreign party has acquired agricultural land in Mississippi in violation of this act, the office shall report the violation to the Attorney General.
(b) Upon receiving notice under paragraph (a) of this subsection or upon receipt of information that leads the Attorney General to believe that a violation of this act may exist, the Attorney General may issue subpoenas requiring the:
(i) Appearance of witnesses;
(ii) Production of relevant records; and
(iii) Giving of relevant testimony.
(c) If, as a result of the investigation under subsection (3)(b) of this section, the Attorney General concludes that a violation of this act has occurred, the Attorney General shall commence an action in circuit court within the jurisdiction wherein the agricultural land is situated.
(d) If the agricultural land is held in violation of this act, the circuit court shall order that the agricultural land be sold through judicial foreclosure or that it escheats to the state in accordance with the provisions of Sections 29-1-75(2)(c) and 89-1-23.
(4) (a) The proceeds of the sale of agricultural land by judicial foreclosure authorized under this section shall be disbursed to lien holders, in the order of priority, except for liens which under the terms of the sale are to remain on the agricultural land.
(b) The Attorney General shall promptly record a copy of the following in the local land records:
(i) Upon commencement, notice of the pendency of an action brought under subsections (2)(b) and (3)(c) of this section; and
(ii) The order for the sale of the agricultural land under subsections (2)(c) and (3)(d) of this section.
(5) A prohibited foreign party owning agricultural land subsequent to the passage of this act and not listed under one (1) of the exceptions set out in subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment not to exceed two (2) years imprisonment in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections or a fine of Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000.00), or both fine and imprisonment.
(6) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that a prohibited foreign party is a resident alien of the State of Mississippi.
(7) Title to agricultural land is not invalid or subject to divestiture due to a violation of this act by:
(a) Any former owner; or
(b) Another person holding or owning a former interest in the agricultural land.
(8) The Secretary of State, in conjunction with the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, may designate employees of his or her office or of the Department of Agriculture and Commerce, who have the powers of peace officers or institutional law enforcement officers in the enforcement of the criminal laws of this state, to perform the duties of the office under Section 7-3-5(2).
(9) No person who is not subject to this act shall be required to determine or inquire into whether another person is or may be subject to this act.
SECTION 5. Section 89-1-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
89-1-23. (1) Resident aliens may acquire and hold land, and may dispose of it and transmit it by descent, as citizens of the state may. Except as otherwise provided in this section, nonresident aliens shall not hereafter acquire or hold land, but a nonresident alien may have or take a lien on land to secure a debt, and at any sale thereof to enforce payment of the debt may purchase the same, and thereafter hold it, not longer than twenty (20) years, with full power during said time to sell the land, in fee, to a citizen; or he may retain it by becoming a citizen within that time. All land held or acquired contrary to this section shall escheat to the state; but a title to real estate in the name of a citizen of the United States, or a person who has declared his intention of becoming a citizen, whether resident or nonresident, if he be a purchaser or holder, shall not be forfeited or escheated by reason of the alienage of any former owner or other person.
(2) Any person who was or is a citizen of the United States and became or becomes an alien by reason of marriage to a citizen of a foreign country, may hereafter inherit, or if he or she heretofore inherited or acquired or hereafter inherits, may hold, own, transmit by descent or transfer land free from any escheat to the State of Mississippi, if said land has not heretofore escheated by final valid order or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) Nonresident aliens who are citizens of Syria or the Lebanese Republic may inherit property from citizens or residents of the State of Mississippi.
(4) Except as otherwise provided
in subsection (5), nonresident aliens may acquire and hold not to exceed three
hundred twenty (320) acres of land in this state for the purpose of industrial development
thereon. In addition, any nonresident alien may acquire and hold not to exceed
five (5) acres of land for residential purposes. The nonresident alien may dispose
of any such land, but if any land acquired for industrial development ceases to
be used for industrial development while owned by a nonresident alien, it shall
escheat to the state. The limitation set forth in this * * * subsection shall not apply to corporations
in which the stock thereof is partially or wholly owned by nonresident aliens; and
title to real estate acquired by, and held in the name of, any corporation, limited
partnership, general partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability
company, joint venture, joint stock company or business trust organized and existing
under the laws of the State of Mississippi or of any other state or the federal
laws of the United States of America for purposes of development thereon of one
or more projects, as defined in Section 57-75-5(f)(xxxi), shall not be forfeited
or escheated by reason of the alienage of any former owner or other person if said
land has not heretofore escheated to the State of Mississippi by final valid order
or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction. The limitation set forth in
this section shall also not apply to any real estate acquired by, and held in
the name of, any corporation, limited partnership, general partnership, limited
liability partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, joint stock
company or business trust organized and existing under the laws of the State of
Mississippi or of any other state or the federal laws of the United States of
America for purposes of developing, owning and/or operating a project, as
defined in Section 57-75-5(f)(xxxii).
(5) A prohibited foreign party, as defined in Section 2 of this act, who is a nonresident alien of the United States, shall not be allowed to acquire and hold any land interests in the State of Mississippi.
SECTION 6. Section 29-1-75, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
29-1-75. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, neither a corporation nor a nonresident alien, nor any association of persons composed in whole or in part of nonresident aliens, shall directly or indirectly purchase or become the owner of any of the public lands; and every patent issued in contravention hereof shall be void.
(2) (a) A banking corporation owning such tax-forfeited lands or holding a mortgage or deed of trust thereon at the time of the sale to the state, and whose mortgage or deed of trust is still in force and effect, may purchase such lands, regardless of acreage, owned by it as aforesaid or on which it held a mortgage or deed of trust. In the event of a purchase by such corporation as a mortgagee, such lands shall be held for the benefit of the mortgagor subject to all the terms and conditions of the mortgage or deed of trust held by the purchasing banking corporation and, upon payment of the debt secured by such mortgage or deed of trust, together with interest and incidents, such banking corporation shall in that event reconvey such lands to the original mortgagor, his heirs or assigns.
(b) Any other nonbanking corporation may purchase lands sold or forfeited to the state for delinquent taxes under any section of Chapter 1, Title 29, specifically relating to the sale of such tax-forfeited lands by the Secretary of State. A nonbanking corporation purchasing land sold or forfeited to the state shall be subject to the acreage limitations of Section 29-1-73.
(c) Nonresident aliens may acquire and hold not to exceed three hundred twenty (320) acres of public lands in this state for the purpose of industrial development thereon. In addition, any nonresident alien may acquire and hold not to exceed five (5) acres of public lands for residential purposes. If any land acquired by a nonresident alien for the purpose of industrial development ceases to be used for industrial development, it shall escheat to the public body that sold such land to the nonresident alien.
(3) A prohibited foreign party, as defined in Section 2 of this act, who is a nonresident alien of the United States shall not be allowed to acquire and hold any land interests in the State of Mississippi, notwithstanding the purpose for which the land is intended for use.
( * * *4) This section shall stand repealed on
July 1, 2026.
SECTION 7. Section 7-3-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
7-3-5. (1) The Secretary of State shall keep a correct register of all official acts and proceedings of the Governor and take charge of and safely keep in his office the returns of all elections by the people. He shall lay all official documents before either branch of the Legislature when required; he shall receive from the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate, and shall carefully keep and preserve in his office, the journals, papers and proceedings of both houses of the Legislature; and he shall carefully keep and preserve the enrolled acts and resolutions of the Legislature, maps, charts and other property of the state remaining at the seat of government, the keeping of which is not otherwise provided for. He shall act as the custodian of the apostille issued by the Department of Authentications Office of the Hague Conference on Private International Law and shall act as the authorizing official for public documents under the Hague agreement of 1961.
(2) The Secretary of State shall collect and analyze information concerning the unlawful sale or possession of agricultural land by prohibited foreign parties and administer and enforce the provisions of the "Mississippi Agricultural Land Protection and Foreign Acquisition Prohibition Act," including, without limitation, the reporting of a violation of the act to the Attorney General under Section 4(3) of this act.
SECTION 8. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2024.