A report (link) from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) criticized USDA’s efforts to collect, track and share data regarding foreign purchases of U.S. farmland under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) of 1978. GAO called for USDA to enhance its procedures, including providing data to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) and improve data verification and monitoring.
While USDA agreed with most GAO recommendations, it disagreed with certain steps, such as incorporating country information from additional foreign persons beyond the primary investor. This report is expected to influence further exploration of the topic by lawmakers via hearings and more.
