Macon Reporter

Chris Miller introduced HB1162 in the Illinois House on Jan. 9, 2025, during the general assembly session 104, according to the Illinois General Assembly.

According to the Illinois General Assembly site, the legislature summarized the bill's official text as follows: "Creates the Foreign Land Ownership and Foreign Countries of Concern Act. Provides that a foreign principal may not directly or indirectly own, have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent agricultural land or any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in such land in the State. Provides that a foreign principal has a de minimis indirect interest if any ownership is the result of the foreign principal's ownership of registered equities in a publicly traded company owning the land and if the foreign principal's ownership interest in the company is either: (1) less than 5% of any class of registered equities or less than 5% in the aggregate in multiple classes of registered equities; or a noncontrolling interest in an entity controlled by a company that is both registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser under the federal Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, and is not a foreign entity. Provides for registration of certain foreign-owned property. Establishes requirements for acquiring foreign-owned land on or after the effective date of the Act. Provides that a foreign principal may not directly or indirectly own, or have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in real property on or within 10 miles of any military installation or critical infrastructure facility in the State. Provides that persons or entities may not directly or indirectly own, have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in real property in the State if the person or entity is: the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, or any official or member of the People's Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party, a business principally located in the People's Republic of China of or its subsidiaries, or any person who is domiciled in the People's Republic of China and who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States. Provides exemptions. Makes other changes. Amends the Illinois Procurement Code and the Property Owned By Noncitizens Act to make conforming changes."

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill establishes the Foreign Land Ownership and Foreign Countries of Concern Act, prohibiting foreign principals, including certain countries of concern, from owning or controlling agricultural lands or real property within or near military installations and critical infrastructure in Illinois, except for minor indirect interests. The restrictions apply to entities and individuals from countries like China, Russia, and North Korea, and involve registration requirements. Violations may result in property forfeiture and civil penalties. The bill also prohibits state contracts and economic incentives with entities from these countries, while providing exemptions for diplomatic purposes and enforcing compliance through amendments to Illinois law. The effective date is yet to be determined, with various provisions kicking in from Jan. 1, 2026, and later.

Chris Miller has proposed another four bills since the beginning of the 104th session.

Miller graduated from Eureka College with a BS.

Chris Miller is currently serving in the Illinois State House, representing the state's 101st House District. He replaced previous state representative Reggie Phillips in 2023.

Bills in Illinois follow a multi-step legislative process, beginning with introduction in either the House or Senate, followed by committee review, floor debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching the governor for approval or veto. The General Assembly operates on a biennial schedule, and while typically thousands of bills are introduced each session, only a fraction successfully pass through the process to become law.

You can read more about bills and other measures here.

Bill Number	Date Introduced	Short Description
HB1162	01/09/2025	Creates the Foreign Land Ownership and Foreign Countries of Concern Act. Provides that a foreign principal may not directly or indirectly own, have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent agricultural land or any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in such land in the State. Provides that a foreign principal has a de minimis indirect interest if any ownership is the result of the foreign principal's ownership of registered equities in a publicly traded company owning the land and if the foreign principal's ownership interest in the company is either: (1) less than 5% of any class of registered equities or less than 5% in the aggregate in multiple classes of registered equities; or a noncontrolling interest in an entity controlled by a company that is both registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment adviser under the federal Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, and is not a foreign entity. Provides for registration of certain foreign-owned property. Establishes requirements for acquiring foreign-owned land on or after the effective date of the Act. Provides that a foreign principal may not directly or indirectly own, or have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in real property on or within 10 miles of any military installation or critical infrastructure facility in the State. Provides that persons or entities may not directly or indirectly own, have a controlling interest in, or acquire by purchase, grant, devise, or descent any interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in real property in the State if the person or entity is: the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, or any official or member of the People's Republic of China or the Chinese Communist Party, a business principally located in the People's Republic of China of or its subsidiaries, or any person who is domiciled in the People's Republic of China and who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States. Provides exemptions. Makes other changes. Amends the Illinois Procurement Code and the Property Owned By Noncitizens Act to make conforming changes.
HB0014	01/09/2025	Amends the Illinois Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Provides that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, any package of beef sold in Illinois must have a label on the package that contains the beef's country of origin.
HB0015	01/09/2025	Creates the Illinois Cultivated Meat Act. Provides that it is unlawful for any person to manufacture for sale, sell, hold or offer for sale, or distribute cultivated meat. Provides that a person who knowingly violates this Act commits a Class C misdemeanor. Allows for rulemaking by the Department of Agriculture. Makes a finding and states the purpose. Defines cultivated meat.
HB0016	01/09/2025	Amends the Illinois Estate and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Act. Provides that, for persons dying on or after January 1, 2026, the exclusion amount shall be the applicable exclusion amount calculated under Section 2010 of the Internal Revenue Code, including any deceased spousal unused exclusion amount (currently, the exclusion amount for Illinois estate tax purposes is $4,000,000). Effective immediately.
HB1160	01/09/2025	Creates the Protect the Flag Act. Provides that an institution of higher education that, pursuant to an official policy of the institution to prohibit the display of the flag of the United States by the institution, removes, censors, takes down, prohibits, or otherwise halts display of the flag of the United States is ineligible to receive State funds for the following fiscal year until the institution reports to the General Assembly and the Board of Higher Education the complete and proper reinstatement, by the institution in its official capacity, of the flag of the United States at any and all locations on campus property from which a previously displayed flag of the United States was removed, censored, taken down, prohibited, or otherwise halted from display pursuant to an official policy of the institution to prohibit the display of the flag of the United States by the institution.
HB1161	01/09/2025	Creates the Safety and Opportunity for Girls Act. Provides that notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no receipt of State funding may be contingent upon an educational institution forgoing the maintenance of sex-segregated spaces by the educational institution, including bathrooms and locker rooms. Provides that notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no receipt of State funding may be contingent upon an educational institution forgoing the maintenance of sex-segregated athletic or academic programs by the educational institution.
HB1163	01/09/2025	Amends the Counties Code. Provides that a commercial wind energy facility owner or solar energy facility owner must file a land reclamation plan and a recycling plan with the Department of Agriculture prior to the required public hearing on the siting of a facility. Provides that the land reclamation plan must outline how the property on which a facility has been constructed will be returned to the state the property existed prior to the construction of the facility upon removal of the facility. Provides that the recycling plan must outline how the material used to construct the facility will be recycled. Provides that a commercial solar energy facility may not be sited on property where the property's soil's crop productivity index is greater than 110. Effective immediately.
HB1164	01/09/2025	Amends the Environmental Protection Act. Provides that a entity may not construct a windmill on land anywhere in the State unless an equal number of windmills have been or are constructed by the entity constructing the windmill within 3,000 feet of a county with a population more than 3,000,000.
HB1219	01/09/2025	Amends the General Assembly Operations Act. Provides that, if a legislator introduces legislation that results in the taking of private land for a project in another legislator's district, then a project of that same type must be completed in the district of the legislator who introduced the legislation that resulted in the taking of private land.
HB1220	01/09/2025	Amends the Reproductive Health Act. Provides that consent to a termination of pregnancy is voluntary and informed only if: the physician who is to perform the procedure, or the referring physician, has, at a minimum, orally, while physically present in the same room, and at least 24 hours before the procedure, provided the woman with specified information; specified printed materials prepared and provided by the Department of Public Health have been provided to the pregnant woman, if she chooses to view these materials; and the woman acknowledges in writing, before the termination of pregnancy, that the information required to be provided has been provided. Provides that if a medical emergency exists and a physician cannot comply with the requirements for informed consent, a physician may terminate a pregnancy if he or she has obtained at least one corroborative medical opinion attesting to the medical necessity for emergency medical procedures and to the fact that to a reasonable degree of medical certainty the continuation of the pregnancy would threaten the life of the pregnant woman. Provides that a physician or other person who violates the provisions shall be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.
HB1221	01/09/2025	Repeals the Firearm Owners Identification Card Act. Amends various Acts to make conforming changes. Effective immediately.