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Senate Engrossed
agricultural land; foreign ownership; violation |
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State of Arizona Senate Fifty-sixth Legislature Second Regular Session 2024
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SENATE BILL 1004 |
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An Act
amending title 33, chapter 4, article 3, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 33-443; relating to agricultural land administration.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 33, chapter 4, article 3, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 33-443, to read:
33-443. Prohibition against land ownership; foreign ownership; natural products; exemption; enforcement; rules; violation; classification; definitions
A. NOTWITHSTANDING any other law, the following may not purchase, acquire or control title or any INTEREST in AGRICULTURAL land or land that is PRIMARILY used to harvest timber, minerals, GRAVEL or other natural products in this state:
1. an agent of a DESIGNATED country.
2. an agent of A COMPANY or other legal ENTITY with a MAJORITY control by CITIZENS of a DESIGNATED COUNTRY.
3. an individual who is a citizen of a designated COUNTRY or whose operations are HEADQUARTERed in a DESIGNATED country.
b. This section does not apply to an individual who is a lawful permanent RESIDENT of the United States.
C. The attorney general shall ENFORCE this section. if the attorney general reasonably suspects a VIOLATION of this section OCCURRED, the ATTORNEY general shall commence an action in superior court in the county in which the land interest is located.
D. If the SUPERIOR court finds that title or any interest was obtained in VIOLATION of subsection A of this section, the court shall enter an order:
1. STATING THE COURT'S FINDINGs.
2. DIVESTING THE PERSON'S INTEREST.
3. directing the county TREASURER to sell the AGRICULTURAL lands or the land interests in a manner that is CONSISTENT WITH TITLE 42, chapter 18, article 7, except that the county treasurer shall forward any balance REMAINING after paying the taxes, INTERESTs, PENALTIES, fees and costs to the state TREASURER for deposit in the state GENERAL fund.
E. The department of law shall adopt rules to IMPLEMENT this section.
F. A person who KNOWINGLY VIOLATES this section is guilty of a class 6 felony.
G. For the purposes of this section:
1. "AGRICULTURAL lands" has the same meaning prescribed in section 37-1002.
2. "control" means ownership of not less than fifty percent of the voting ownership interest of an ORGANIZATION necessary to ELECT a GOVERNING AUTHORITY.
3. "DESIGNATED country" MEANS a country that is identified by the United States director of national intelligence as a country that poses a risk to the national security of the United States in each of the three most recent annual threat assessments of the United States intelligence community issued pursuant to section 108b of the national security act of 1947 (50 United States Code section 3043b).