Texas state Rep. James Talarico, a Democrat, voted against SB 17, a bill meant to prevent China from buying land in Texas.
It’s true that Talarico voted nay on the bill in question, SB 17, even though he had previously voted in favor of continuing to amend its language. The final version of SB 17 included amendments that its opponents said would broaden it beyond its intended scope. A spokesperson for Talarico said he voted nay on the final version to prevent giving the governor more power. The bill ultimately passed and became law in September 2025.
Rumors that Texas state Rep. James Talarico voted against a bill that would prevent the Chinese Communist Party from buying land in the state circulated on the internet in early September 2026 as Talarico, a Democrat, campaigned for a U.S. Senate seat.
People on social media claimed Talarico voted against a bill called SB 17, some accusing him of rejecting “the basic responsibility to protect the state’s soil and food system.”
(X user @EricLDaugh)
Supporters of Talarico’s Republican opponent in the November 2026 election, state Attorney General Ken Paxton, unleashed a campaign ad amplifying the claim.
It’s true that Talarico voted against SB 17, a bill aimed at preventing foreign interests from purchasing land in Texas. However, as Talarico and others pointed out, the bill had been amended such that it was likely to have effects beyond the scope of its original intent.
The legislation was initially aimed to prohibit real estate deals involving Texas land by countries identified by U.S. intelligence officials as national security threats: primarily China, Iran, North Korea and Russia.
The bill eventually passed by the Texas House in May 2025 was amended so that the governor, rather than federal intelligence officials, could ultimately “determine the countries whose residents, governments and other entities could be banned from buying property here,” according to reporting by The Texas Tribune.
In the Texas House Journal from May 8, 2025, which also recorded Talarico’s nay vote, a fellow critic, Democratic Rep. Mihaela Plesa, explained, “While the intent to safeguard critical infrastructure and land interests is valid, CSSB17, as amended, became too broad and open-ended. The bill now permits the governor and state agencies to unilaterally add entire countries to its prohibitive list, restricting land ownership by nationals of those countries without requiring future legislative approval or public oversight.”
A spokesperson for Talarico told Snopes via email that Talarico voted nay on SB 17 to avoid giving the governor increased power. Talarico’s team elaborated:
James doesn’t support the Chinese Communist Party owning Texas land and his record reflects that, including by voting to stop countries like China from purchasing land near critical infrastructure like military bases. Ken Paxton is spreading lies about bills that sought to ban American citizens from buying land in this country — undermining our neighbors’ God-given rights — in an effort to distract from his career of corruption. Paxton is the only candidate in this race that has cozied up to the Chinese Communist Party, going on a lavish all-expenses-paid trip to China and meeting with CCP officials while he was supposed to be serving us. There’s a reason Republicans call him “Commie Ken.”
The bill ultimately passed and was signed into law in September 2025.
The record also showed Talarico had voted yea previously on one of the amendments of the bill aimed at protecting U.S. visa holders, but ultimately voted nay on the final bill.
SB 667 and other related votes
Legislators voted on a different bill, SB 667, aimed at “prohibiting state entities from investing in Chinese-affiliated entities” as a means of funding state-funded pension plans on May 28, 2025. According to the Texas House Journal transcript of that meeting, Talarico had an excused absence that day and did not vote on the final version of the bill, which ultimately passed.
Talarico’s votes on other bills with potential impact on Texans’ dealings with foreign entities included:
- Yea on SB 1349, which was part of the legislative package that included SB 17, described as “creating the criminal offenses of transnational repression and unauthorized enforcement of foreign law.” (The House Journal shows Talarico as first voting nay, with a correction that it was meant to be recorded as yea.)
- Yea on SB 2116, which was aimed at “business or governmental entities from entering into contracts or other agreements relating to state critical infrastructure with certain foreign-owned companies.”
- Yea on HB 130, aimed at preventing the “use of biotechnology by foreign adversary countries as a component of military power and commercial advantage.
The “Commie Ken” reference in the statement from Talarico’s team referenced to a 2023 report that alleged Paxton went on a “lavish” trip to China to meet with government officials, reportedly against the advice of his staff.
Paxton’s opponent in the 2026 Texas Republican primary, incumbent four-term Sen. John Cornyn, called out Paxton’s trip during his campaign and even built a website called CrookedKen.com that also labeled him “Commie Ken” and described him as “cozying up to the CCP.”
For further reading, we’ve investigated other claims about Talarico, including that he once said he “hated” Christianity and that U.S. President Donald Trump once called him an “insult to Jesus.”
