U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., is championing a proposal “to prohibit the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) from issuing, renewing, or allowing the transfer of any new or existing energy and mineral leases to any company owned, operated, or controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).”
Waltz introduced the “CCP Lease Abolishment for Minerals and Petroleum (CLAMP) Act” with U.S. Reps. Josh Gottheimer, D-NJ, and Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., as co-sponsors.
Waltz’s office offered some of the reasons why the congressman introduced the bill.
“Currently, the DOI regulations state that leases on federal lands and waters may be acquired and held only by American citizens; however, foreign companies can acquire and hold leases through American-subsidiary companies,” Waltz’s office noted. “For example, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is a state-owned Chinese oil and gas producer led by Li Fanrong, a member of the CCP, that is operating under an American subsidiary while holding stake in two onshore shale oil projects in Texas and two offshore oil and gas projects in the Gulf of Mexico.”
“The Chinese Communist is taking advantage of our free-market economy to exploit, steal, influence, and spy,” said Waltz. “We cannot continue to sit back and allow our greatest adversary to take control over resources that are integral to our industrial base and American consumers. The CCP has exploited loopholes for long enough. I am proud to work with Congressman Gottheimer to keep our natural resources and public lands & waters out of the hands of the CCP.”
“The Chinese Communist Party has made it clear that it is willing to leverage technology and resources to breach United States institutions, steal our intellectual property, collect data on U.S. citizens, access the systems that handle our critical infrastructure, and control our country’s resources. We must protect our national security from the CCP — an adversary that wants to do harm to America’s standing as the leader of the free world,” said Gottheimer. “With this bipartisan legislation I’m introducing with Congressman Waltz, both Democrats and Republicans are coming together to stop the Chinese government from accessing our federal lands, waters, and critical natural resources.”
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Natural Resources and Agriculture Committees. So far, there is no companion measure over in the U.S. Senate.
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