National security panel reviews land buys near air force base
New efforts are underway to stop agricultural land from being purchased by big businesses.
Transcript
00:00 California lawmakers taking a close look at the secretive land purchases near Travis Air Force Base in Solano County.
00:06 Phones at my office have been ringing off the hook.
00:09 State Senator Bill Dodd represents communities around the airbase.
00:13 It is job one to protect the land around there from encroachment.
00:18 A group known as Flannery Associates has bought up more than 50,000 acres of farmland nearby.
00:23 Flannery Associates is now surrounded. Three sides, 75%.
00:28 Now news reports have unveiled some of the group's wealthy investors.
00:32 The names are very prominent names in Silicon Valley.
00:35 They include venture capital billionaires and even the widow of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.
00:41 Flannery Associates is using secrecy, bullying and mobster tactics to force generational farm families to sell.
00:49 That's prompting lawmakers to consider new efforts to prevent these types of anonymous land grabs.
00:54 What happens if a hostile actor purchases the land and we don't know what they want to use that land for?
01:01 So what are the proposals being considered to protect farmland?
01:05 Ideas include more disclosure of ag land purchases,
01:08 prohibiting foreign ownership of farms and new tax credits and conservation easements to help growers.
01:14 This will help keep agricultural land in production while preserving the rural ag economy.
01:19 A survey indicates Flannery is considering a futuristic new city on the farmland.
01:24 But others say that threatens the future of the airbase.
01:27 Travis Air Force Base cannot operate. Surrounded by skyscrapers, wind turbines,
01:32 tracked homes right up to the fence line. No military base can.
01:36 [BLANK_AUDIO]