LANSING, Mich. (April 18, 2025) — Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit) and Rep. Mai Xiong (D-Warren) have issued the following joint statement on behalf of the Michigan Asian Pacific American (APA) Legislative Caucus in regard to House Bills 4233 and 4234, which seeks to restrict people from owning land and property in Michigan based on their national origin. Specifically, these bills would prohibit individuals from seven countries — China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria, and Venezuela — from owning agricultural land or real property within 20 miles of certain key facilities and military bases under the guise of “national security” concerns.
“Alien land laws were unconstitutional decades ago and remain unconstitutional, impractical, and xenophobic today. Our nation has had a long, unfortunate history of anti-Asian sentiment that led to the exclusion of immigrants from certain countries like the 1881 Chinese Exclusion Act, barring people from becoming citizens, and prohibiting land ownership by Asian immigrants, like the California Alien Land Law of 1913. All of these policies were rightfully overturned many years ago and should not be revisited here in 2025.
“Our Constitution clearly protects property rights for Michiganders, and our civil rights laws protect individuals from discrimination based on national origin. House Bills 4233-4234 do nothing to help Michiganders struggling to afford a decent home or solve our housing crisis. In fact, these bills would make it harder for realtors to do their jobs, further xenophobia, create a logistical nightmare, and would absolutely be challenged quickly in court for being unconstitutional.”
This legislation was favorably passed out of the House Committee on Government Operations yesterday and now advances to the House floor for the full chamber’s consideration.
The Michigan APA Caucus is a bicameral, bipartisan caucus that works to advance policies and initiatives to provide for the full participation of Asian Pacific Americans in the state of Michigan.
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