Amends and adds to existing law to prohibit the purchase of single-family homes by foreign persons.

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-eighth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2026 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE BILL NO. 904 BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE AN ACT1 RELATING TO PROPERTY SALES; AMENDING CHAPTER 1, TITLE 55, IDAHO CODE, BY THE2 ADDITION OF A NEW SECTION 55-116, IDAHO CODE, TO ESTABLISH PROVISIONS3 PROHIBITING THE PURCHASE OF SINGLE-FAMILY HOMES BY FOREIGN PERSONS, TO4 DEFINE A TERM, TO PROVIDE PROCEDURES, TO PROVIDE FOR ENFORCEMENT, AND5 TO PROVIDE FOR IMMUNITY FROM LIABILITY; AMENDING SECTION 55-103, IDAHO6 CODE, TO REVISE A PROVISION REGARDING EXCEPTIONS TO WHO MAY OWN PROPERTY7 AND TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY AND PRO-8 VIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.9

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:10

SECTION 1. That Chapter 1, Title 55, Idaho Code, be, and the same is11 hereby amended by the addition thereto of a NEW SECTION, to be known and des-12 ignated as Section 55-116, Idaho Code, and to read as follows:13 55-116. PROHIBITION ON PURCHASE OF SINGLE-FAMILY HOMES BY FOREIGN14 PERSONS. (1) On and after July 1, 2026, a foreign person, as defined in this15 section, shall not be permitted to purchase or acquire a controlling inter-16 est in the ownership of a single-family home property in Idaho.17 (2) For the purpose of this section, "foreign person" means:18 (a) An individual who is not a citizen or legal resident of the United19 States, or an agent, trustee, or fiduciary thereof;20 (b) A foreign corporation incorporated under the laws of a jurisdiction21 outside of the United States that would be a business corporation if in-22 corporated under the laws of this state, or an agent, trustee, or fidu-23 ciary thereof;24 (c) A foreign government, meaning a government other than the federal25 government of the United States, the government of any territory or pos-26 session of the United States, or the government of any state, political27 subdivision of a state, or Indian tribe;28 (d) A real estate investment trust, whether publicly traded or not, the29 majority of whose shareholders are restricted persons described in this30 subsection;31 (e) A company that is registered with the United States securities and32 exchange commission as an investment adviser under the investment ad-33 visers act of 1940, as amended, when acting on behalf of clients who are34 restricted persons described in this subsection; or35 (f) Any other corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership,36 limited liability company, association, joint venture, agency, or in-37 strumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity, acting on be-38 half of a nonresident alien, foreign corporation, or foreign govern-39 ment, or an agent, trustee, or fiduciary thereof.40 (3) A foreign person that acquires, directly or indirectly, control of41 a single-family home property on or after July 1, 2026, by devise, by de-42

2 scent, through the enforcement of security interests, or through the collec-1 tion of debts, must sell, transfer, or otherwise divest itself of the prop-2 erty within one hundred eighty (180) days of acquiring control of the prop-3 erty.4 (4) If a foreign person does not divest the single-family home property5 as required by this section, the attorney general shall commence an action in6 the district court within the jurisdiction of the property.7 (5) If the property is held in violation of this section, the district8 court shall order that the property be sold through judicial foreclosure.9 Proceeds of the sale shall be disbursed to lienholders, in the order of pri-10 ority, except for liens that, under the terms of the sale, are to remain on11 the property.12 (6) On or after January 1, 2027, any individual may act as a whistle-13 blower and provide a referral to the office of the attorney general for vio-14 lations of this section.15 (7) If a whistleblower referral results in a divestiture of land or16 other assets held in violation of this section, the whistleblower shall be17 entitled to a reward equal to thirty percent (30%) of the proceeds of the18 property sale resulting from a violation of this section after disbursements19 have been made pursuant to paragraphs (a) through (c) of this subsection.20 Proceeds of the sale shall be disbursed in the following order:21 (a) The payment of authorized costs of the sale, including all approved22 fees and expenses of the referee and any taxes and assessments due;23 (b) The payment, in an amount approved by the court, to the attorney24 general for reimbursement of investigation and litigation costs and ex-25 penses;26 (c) To bona fide lienholders, in the order of priority, except for liens27 that, under the terms of the sale, are to remain on the property;28 (d) To whistleblowers; and29 (e) To the restricted foreign person.30 (8) The responsibility for determining whether a foreign person is sub-31 ject to the provisions of this section rests solely with the foreign person,32 the attorney general, or any qualifying whistleblower. An individual or en-33 tity who is not a foreign person shall not be required to determine or inquire34 whether another person or entity is or may be subject to the provisions of35 this section and shall bear no civil or criminal liability under this sec-36 tion.37

SECTION 2. That Section 55-103, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby38 amended to read as follows:39 55-103. WHO MAY OWN PROPERTY. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2)40 or (3) of this section or as otherwise provided in this chapter, any person,41 whether citizen or alien, may take, hold, and dispose of property, real or42 personal.43 (2) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, on and af-44 ter the effective date of this subsection, a foreign government or a foreign45 state-controlled enterprise shall not purchase, acquire, or hold any con-46 trolling interest in agricultural land, forest land, water rights, mining47 claims, or mineral rights in the state of Idaho. This subsection does not48 apply to any interest in agricultural land, forest land, water rights, min-49

3 ing claims, or mineral rights acquired by a foreign government or foreign1 state-controlled enterprise prior to the effective date of this subsection2 or to any foreign pension fund.3 (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a for-4 eign principal from a foreign adversary shall not purchase, acquire, or hold5 any controlling interest, except a de minimis indirect interest, in agricul-6 tural land, water rights, mining claims, or mineral rights in the state of7 Idaho. A foreign principal has a de minimis indirect interest if any owner-8 ship is the result of the foreign principal's ownership of registered equi-9 ties in a publicly traded company owning the land and if the foreign princi-10 pal's ownership in the company is either:11 (a) Less than five percent (5%) of any class of registered equities or12 less than five percent (5%) in the aggregate in multiple classes of reg-13 istered equities; or14 (b) A noncontrolling interest in an entity controlled by a company that15 is both registered with the United States securities and exchange com-16 mission as an investment advisor under the investment advisers act of17 1940, as amended, and is not a foreign entity.18 (4) A foreign principal that directly or indirectly owns or otherwise19 controls agricultural land, water rights, mining claims, or mineral rights20 in the state of Idaho must sell, transfer, or otherwise divest itself of21 the agricultural land, mining claims, or mineral rights within one hundred22 eighty (180) days of the effective date of this act.23 (5) A foreign principal that directly or indirectly owns or acquires24 agricultural land, water rights, or any interest in such land in this state25 must register with the Idaho state department of agriculture within sixty26 (60) days of the effective date of this act or the date of acquisition,27 whichever is latest. The department must establish a form for such registra-28 tion, which, at a minimum, must include all of the following:29 (a) The name of the owner of the agricultural land, water rights, or the30 owner of the interest in such land;31 (b) The address of the agricultural land, the property appraiser's par-32 cel identification number, and the property's legal description; and33 (c) The number of acres of agricultural land.34 (6) A foreign principal that directly owns or acquires mining claims35 or mineral rights or any interest in such claims in this state must register36 with the Idaho department of lands and the Idaho secretary of state within37 sixty (60) days of the effective date of this act or the date of acquisition,38 whichever is latest. The foreign principal shall be registered to do busi-39 ness with the Idaho secretary of state's office. The Idaho department of40 lands shall provide the form for such registration, which at a minimum must41 include the following:42 (a) The mineral lease number with lease length and premises by parcel43 and acres; and44 (b) The application for use of state land by the individual or legal en-45 tity.46 (7) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, a47 foreign principal from a foreign adversary country may acquire agricultural48 land, mining claims, or mineral rights on or after July 1, 2025, by devise49 or descent, through the enforcement of security interests, or through the50

4 collection of debts, provided that the foreign principal sells, transfers,1 or otherwise divests itself of the agricultural land, water rights, mining2 claims, or mineral rights within one hundred eighty (180) days of acquiring3 the agricultural land, mining claims, or mineral rights.4 (8) The provisions of subsections (3) through (7) of this section shall5 not apply to an entity that has a national security agreement with the com-6 mittee on foreign investment in the United States as of July 1, 2025, and7 maintains such national security agreement.8 (9) The Idaho state department of agriculture and department of lands9 shall adopt rules, subject to legislative approval, to implement the provi-10 sions of this section.11 (10) The responsibility for determining whether an entity is subject to12 this section rests solely with the foreign entity, the attorney general, or13 any qualifying whistleblower, and no other individual or entity. An indi-14 vidual or entity who is not a foreign entity shall not be required to deter-15 mine or inquire whether another person or entity is or may be subject to the16 provisions of this section and shall bear no civil or criminal liability un-17 der this section.18 (11) If a foreign principal from a foreign adversary country does not19 divest the public or private lands, mining claims, or mineral rights as re-20 quired by this section, the attorney general shall commence an action in the21 district court within the jurisdiction of the public or private land, mining22 claims, or mineral rights.23 (12) If the public or private land is held in violation of this sec-24 tion, the district court shall order that the public or private land be sold25 through judicial foreclosure.26 (13) Proceeds of the sale shall be disbursed to lienholders, in the or-27 der of priority, except for liens that, under the terms of the sale, are to28 remain on the public or private land.29 (14) Any individual may act as a whistleblower and provide a referral to30 the office of the attorney general for violations of this section.31 (15) If a whistleblower referral results in a divestiture of land, min-32 ing claims, or mineral rights or other assets held in violation of this sec-33 tion, the whistleblower shall be entitled to a reward equal to thirty percent34 (30%) of the proceeds of the land, mining claims, mineral rights, or asset35 sale resulting from a violation of this section after payment of lienhold-36 ers. Proceeds of the sale shall be disbursed in the following order:37 (a) To bona fide lienholders, in order of priority, except for liens38 that, under the terms of the sale, are to remain on the property;39 (b) The payment of authorized costs of the sale, including all approved40 fees and expenses of the referee and any taxes and assessments due;41 (c) The payment, in an amount approved by the court, to the attorney42 general for reimbursement of investigation and litigation costs and ex-43 penses;44 (d) To whistleblowers; and45 (e) To the restricted foreign entity.46 (16) The whistleblower enforcement provision takes effect one hundred47 eighty (180) days after the enforcement date of this section.48 (17) As used in this section:49

5 (a) "Agricultural land" shall have the same meaning as "land actively1 devoted to agricultural purposes" as provided in section 63-604, Idaho2 Code.3 (b) "Controlling interest" means:4 (i) Possession of more than fifty percent (50%) of the ownership5 interest in an entity; or6 (ii) A percentage of ownership interest in an entity that is fifty7 percent (50%) or less if a foreign government actually directs the8 business and affairs of the entity without the requirement or con-9 sent of any other party.10 (c) "Foreign adversary" means any foreign government or foreign non-11 government person engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances12 of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United13 States or security and safety of United States persons as determined un-14 der 15 CFR 791.4, as it existed on January 1, 2025.15 (d) "Foreign government" means a government other than the federal gov-16 ernment of the United States or the government of any state, political17 subdivision of a state, territory, federally recognized Indian tribe,18 or possession of the United States.19 (e) "Forest land" means privately owned or state-owned land being held20 and used primarily for the continuous purpose of growing and harvesting21 trees of a marketable species. Having met the above criteria, forest22 land includes:23 (i) Forest land is land evidenced by present use and silvicul-24 tural treatment.25 (ii) Forest land is land that has a dedicated use that is further26 evidenced by a forest land management plan that includes eventual27 harvest of the forest crop.28 (iii) Forest land is land bearing forest growth or land that has29 not been converted to another use.30 (iv) Forest land is land that has had the trees removed by man31 through harvest, including clear-cuts or by natural disaster,32 such as but not limited to fire, and which within five (5) years af-33 ter harvest or initial assessment will be reforested as specified34 in the forest practices act, chapter 13, title 38, Idaho Code.35 (f) "Foreign pension fund" means a trust, corporation, or other entity36 created or organized under the law of a country other than the United37 States to provide retirement or pension fund benefits. However, the38 term "foreign pension fund" shall not include any trust, corporation,39 or other entity that is owned by or subject to a controlling interest of40 a sovereign wealth fund.41 (g) "Foreign principal" means:42 (i) The government or any official of the government of a foreign43 adversary;44 (ii) A political party or member of a political party or any subdi-45 vision of a political party of a foreign adversary;46 (iii) A partnership, association, corporation, organization, or47 other combination of persons organized under the laws of or having48 its principal place of business in a foreign adversary, or a sub-49 sidiary of such entity, owned or controlled wholly or in part by50

6 any person, entity, or collection of persons or entities of a for-1 eign adversary;2 (iv) Any person who is domiciled in a foreign adversary and is not3 a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States; and4 (v) Any person, entity, or collection of persons or entities de-5 scribed in this paragraph having a controlling interest in a part-6 nership, association, corporation, organization, trust, or any7 other legal entity or subsidiary formed for the purpose of owning8 real property.9 (h) "Mineral right" shall have the same meaning as provided in section10 47-701, Idaho Code.11 (i) "Mining claim" means a portion of land containing minerals that a12 miner has a right to occupy and possess for the purpose of extracting13 minerals.14 (j) "State-controlled enterprise" means a business enterprise, how-15 ever denominated, sovereign wealth fund, or state-backed investment16 fund in which a foreign government has a controlling interest.17 (k) "Water right" shall have the same meaning as provided in section18 42-230, Idaho Code.19 (4)(a) (18)(a) The attorney general shall investigate acquisitions of20 interests in real property reasonably suspected of violating the prohi-21 bitions provided for in subsection (2) of this section upon receipt of a22 complaint alleging such violation.23 (b) The attorney general shall enforce the prohibitions provided for24 in subsection (2) of this section for any interest in land, rights, or25 claims held in violation of the provisions of subsection (2) of this26 section by petitioning the district court for an order and judgment27 that: finds such violation; appoints a receiver; and authorizes the28 receiver to sell such land, rights, or claims. For a receivership pro-29 ceeding under this section:30 (i) Proceeds of the sale shall be disbursed to lienholders, in31 order of priority, except for liens that, under the terms of the32 sale, are to remain on the land, rights, or claims;33 (ii) At the receivership sale, lienholders shall be permitted to34 have a credit bid; and35 (iii) Any excess proceeds shall be disbursed to the owner of record36 of the real property.37 (c) Upon the commencement of an action provided for in this section, the38 attorney general shall promptly file a notice of lis pendens with the39 court.40 (d) Upon the entry of a court order appointing a receiver and authoriz-41 ing the receiver's powers to sell the property pursuant to the provi-42 sions of this section, the attorney general shall promptly record a copy43 of the court order in the office of the county where the property is lo-44 cated that is responsible for the maintenance of property records.45 (e) No title to land, rights, or claims shall be invalid or subject to46 divestiture due to a violation of the provisions of this section by any47 former owner or other individual or entity having formerly held or owned48 an interest in the real property.49

7 (f) Divestiture of a foreign government's or foreign state-controlled1 enterprise's title under this section shall not be a basis to void,2 invalidate, or otherwise extinguish any bona fide mortgage, lien, or3 other interest granted by, through, or under the foreign government or4 foreign state-controlled enterprise.5 (g) No person or entity that is not a foreign government or a foreign6 state-controlled enterprise shall bear any civil or criminal liability7 for failing to determine or to make an inquiry about whether an indi-8 vidual or other entity is a foreign government or a foreign state-con-9 trolled enterprise.10

SECTION 3. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby11 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after12 July 1, 2026.13