Sponsors (4)
The bill enhances protections, transparency, and enforcement to keep farmland in local hands and preserve family farming and conservation, but does so by restricting institutional and absentee ownership, increasing compliance burdens, and exposing some owners to large penalties and legal uncertainty.
Farmers and rural communities retain greater local control of farmland, preserving family farms, local jobs, community wellbeing, and conservation priorities.
Clearer definitions of who is "actively engaged in farming" and targeted eligibility rules make it easier for genuine farmer-owners, lenders, and USDA to apply programs consistently.
Increased transparency and reporting (ownership disclosure, annual compliance data) lets USDA and Congress better target benefits, protect program integrity, and improve oversight of farmland ownership.
Institutional investors (pension funds, REITs, other absentee investors) face restrictions that could reduce available capital for agriculture, potentially raising land prices and limiting expansion or modernization.
New ownership definitions, disclosure requirements, and annual reporting create compliance, legal, and transaction costs for entities and owners, which can be burdensome for small businesses and family farms.
Owners found in violation face sudden property-loss risk, heavy civil penalties (up to twice fair market value), possible criminal exposure, and title clouds that can disrupt sales and financing.
Based on analysis of 7 sections of legislative text.
Generally bans most multilayered and institutional entities from acquiring or holding agricultural land, requires ownership certifications, and authorizes divestiture and penalties for violations.
Official title: To ban new corporate ownership of agricultural land, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 27, 2026 by Jill Tokuda · Last progress April 27, 2026
Prohibits most corporate or multilayered legal entities from acquiring or holding interests in agricultural land, while creating exceptions for bona fide lenders, public research institutions, certain nonprofits, cooperatives, and grandfathered owners. Requires entities to certify compliance to USDA and Farm Credit System programs, authorizes civil and criminal penalties, and empowers the Department of Justice and state attorneys general to seek divestiture and other remedies. Defines key terms (e.g., "actively engaged in farming," "authorized legal entity"), sets documentation and annual reporting requirements, and gives states authority to adopt stricter rules within their borders. The bill focuses on preserving family and independently operated farms by restricting institutional investors and multilayer ownership structures from holding farmland except in limited circumstances.