New legislation proposed in Indiana seeks to restrict the state from doing business with companies located in foreign adversary nations. House Bill 1032, authored by Rep. Craig Haggard, R-Mooresville, aims to strengthen existing laws that already limit deals with countries such as China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill would require individuals and businesses from these countries to divest from Indiana entities by 2026 and create a foreign agent registry for monitoring purposes.
Rep. Haggard’s proposal, alongside a similar measure from Sen. Mike Bohacek, would prohibit economic development deals with companies from adversary nations and prevent the Indiana Economic Development Corp. from establishing offices in those countries. The bill also seeks to increase fines and penalties for violations of these restrictions.
The legislation is part of a broader effort to reduce the influence of countries deemed threatening to national security within Indiana. In addition to economic and business restrictions, the bill would require foreign agents to register with the state and disclose their activities on behalf of a foreign principal. The attorney general’s office would oversee the registry and have the authority to investigate and issue penalties for violations.
While the bill is expected to incur initial costs for staffing and database creation, Rep. Haggard believes the registry unit will be self-funding through civil collections in the future. The goal of the legislation is to streamline reporting and enforcement efforts and ensure that foreign influence is monitored and mitigated in the state.
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