{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://moolenaar.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/moolenaar-rubio-colleagues-call-treasury-retroactively-review-its", "Moolenaar, Rubio, Colleagues Call For Treasury to Retroactively Review Its Failure to Block Gotion Transaction", "2024-10-18", "2024", "2024-10", "Republican", "House", "MI", "John R. Moolenaar", "M001194", "moolenaar.house.gov", "moolenaar", "https://moolenaar.house.gov/media-center/press-releases", "scraper", "Gotion Incorporated, a company with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party, has plans to develop a large industrial site in Mecosta County, Michigan near a U.S. military installation in the state. The failure of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to investigate and block this development poses a serious threat to U.S. national security.\n\nCongressman John Moolenaar (R-MI), U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and their colleagues, sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urging her to use CFIUS\u2019s authority to retroactively review the transaction after CFIUS failed to review it two years ago. The transaction should have been reviewed then because \u201cFederal regulations define the extended range of a military installation as land within a 100-mile radius of the military installation\u201d and CFIUS\u2019s own geographic reference tool shows the Gotion site is less than 60 miles from Camp Grayling.\n\n\u201cWe write to express our deep concern regarding the U.S. Department of the Treasury\u2019s apparent failure to block Gotion Incorporated (Gotion)\u2014an entity with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)\u2014from developing a large industrial site near a major U.S. military installation.\u201d\n\n\u201cGiven CFIUS\u2019 failure to launch a review of Gotion\u2019s site development when the project was first publicly announced two years ago, it is now imperative that CFIUS update its proposed rulemaking to clarify the Committee\u2019s ability to conduct retroactive reviews of covered greenfield investments that it previously failed to address.\u201d\n\nJoining Rubio and Moolenaar were Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Mike Braun (R-IN) and Joni Ernst (R-IA), as well as Representatives Lisa McClain (R-MI), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Jack Bergman (R-MI), John James (R-MI), and Tim Walberg (R-MI).\n\nFlashback\u2026 In September 2023, Rubio and Moolenaar sent a letter to Secretary Yellen urging CFIUS to review Gotion\u2019s ownership.\n\nThe full text of the new letter is below.\n\nDear Secretary Yellen:\n\nWe write to express our deep concern regarding the U.S. Department of the Treasury\u2019s apparent failure to block Gotion Incorporated (Gotion)\u2014an entity with deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)\u2014from developing a large industrial site near a major U.S. military installation. The scope of United States warfighting capabilities is extremely sensitive knowledge. We must only share this information selectively, exclusively, and knowingly with close allies and partners. Federal agencies have a duty to prevent America\u2019s adversaries from obtaining information concerning our national defense personnel and assets. As we are sure you will agree, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) plays a vital role in blocking foreign efforts to collect intelligence on our military via domestic investment.\n\nUnfortunately, CFIUS seems to have neglected a substantial foreign project constituting a major national security threat stemming from a major facility being constructed by Gotion. Gotion is the U.S. subsidiary of Gotion High-Tech, an electric vehicle (EV) battery company which is based in the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) and has documented ties to the CCP. The House Select Committee on the CCP has routinely documented Gotion High-Tech\u2019s notorious, widespread human rights abuses and use of forced labor in mainland China, in addition to its connection with Chinese paramilitary groups. Nonetheless, Gotion is currently constructing a $2.4 billion EV battery plant in Mecosta County, Michigan.\n\nIn June 2023, Gotion announced that its plans for plant construction were outside of CFIUS\u2019 jurisdiction and could therefore continue the project. But as you know, as of February 13, 2020, CFIUS\u2019 jurisdiction applies to greenfield investments when a foreign entity purchases real estate near certain sensitive military bases. Federal regulations define the extended range of a military installation as land within a 100-mile radius of the military installation (31 C.F.R. \u00a7 802.211). Covered installations include certain Army combat training centers within the continental United States (31 C.F.R. \u00a7 802.227(h)).\n\nAccording to CFIUS\u2019 own Part 802 geographic reference tool, Gotion\u2019s site in Michigan is located just under 60 miles south of the Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center\u2014well within the regulation\u2019s definition of extended range. Camp Grayling is the largest National Guard training facility in the United States and is host to both the Northern Strike joint exercises and the National Guard Exportable Combat Training Center Exercises. Yet, despite Camp Grayling\u2019s significance, and the overwhelming evidence that this facility meets CFIUS\u2019 conditions for a sensitive military installation, CFIUS did not include the camp under its definition of covered real estate until its July 2024 proposed rule, \u201cDefinition of Military Installation and the List of Military Installations in Regulations Pertaining to Certain Transactions by Foreign Persons Involving Real Estate in the United States.\u201d\n\nGiven CFIUS\u2019 failure to launch a review of Gotion\u2019s site development when the project was first publicly announced two years ago, it is now imperative that CFIUS update its proposed rulemaking to clarify the Committee\u2019s ability to conduct retroactive reviews of covered greenfield investments that it previously failed to address. This step is well within CFIUS\u2019 authority under 50 U.S.C. 4565 \u00a7(b)(1)(D)(i). This common-sense measure would not only allow CFIUS to put a stop to Gotion\u2019s continued nefarious activity, but also the activities of many other adversarial entities that have slipped under CFIUS\u2019 radar and acquired land near sensitive military sites. CFIUS\u2019 failure to retroactively review these transactions would constitute a major security blunder and permit the CCP to engage in intelligence gathering that compromises our military capabilities and readiness.\n\nGiven the severity of what seems to be a grave lapse in CFIUS\u2019 judgement, we request answers to the following questions:\n\nWhy did CFIUS fail to designate Camp Grayling as an army combat training center under covered real estate until its July 2024 proposed rule?\n\nIf Camp Grayling\u2019s exclusion from covered real estate was a failure in oversight, what steps is CFIUS taking to rectify the situation?\n\nWhat action is CFIUS taking to stop Gotion from continuing its plant construction given its proximity to a major military installation?\n\nWill CFIUS commit to clarify its authority to conduct retroactive reviews of covered greenfield investments that have slipped under CFIUS\u2019 radar?", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:57:20Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://moolenaar.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/moolenaar-rubio-colleagues-call-treasury-retroactively-review-its"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9046541526913643, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}