Attorneys argue that Florida law discriminates against Chinese nationals trying to buy homes
A lawyer on Friday asked a federal appeals court to block a controversial Florida law signed last year that bans Chinese citizens from buying real estate in much of the state. He calls this discriminatory and a violation of the supremacy of the federal government in deciding foreign affairs.
Attorney Ashley Gorski, who represents four Chinese nationals living in the state, told a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals that “Florida unlawfully restricts housing for Chinese people.” The law bans Chinese nationals and citizens from other countries that Florida considers a threat from purchasing real estate near military installations and other “critical infrastructure.”
She compared it to long-overturned early 20th century laws that banned Chinese people from buying real estate.
“It singles out people from certain countries in a way that violates the equal protection guarantees that now exist,” Gorski told the court.
But Nathan Forrester, the attorney representing the state, told Justices Charles Wilson, Robert Luck and Barbara Lagoa that the law aligns with the Biden administration’s national security concerns, including threats from the Chinese government.
“It’s not about race,” Forrester said. “The concern is about the Chinese government, and that is what this law is intended for. The concern is the manipulation of the Chinese government.”
The case comes nearly a year after Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation banning citizens of China and some other countries from purchasing real estate in large parts of Florida. It applies to properties within 10 miles of military installations and other critical infrastructure. The law also applies to agricultural land.
At the time, DeSantis called China the country’s “greatest geopolitical threat” and said the law took a stand against the Chinese Communist Party, a frequent target in its failed bid to land the Republican presidential nominee. The law also affects citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Iran, Russia and North Korea. However, Chinese citizens and anyone who sells real estate to them face the harshest penalties.
Luck and Lagoa both served on the Florida Supreme Court in 2019 after being appointed by DeSantis. Later that year, Luck and Lagoa were appointed to the federal court by then-President Donald Trump. Wilson was appointed to the court in 1999 by then-President Bill Clinton.
During arguments, Luck expressed skepticism about whether Gorski’s clients could bring the lawsuit, questioning how they specifically suffered damages.
Gorski responded that the law prevents Chinese citizens from getting a mortgage in Florida and that there is a “kind of economic war” against China. She said this could have significant foreign policy implications.
“Congress only gave the president the authority to ban a transaction because it is a major decision with significant foreign policy implications,” she said.
But Luck pushed back, saying the state used U.S. policy as a guide in crafting the law. “Florida took what the federal government was doing and joined in,” he said.
Forrester noted that the Biden administration has not filed a brief in support of Gorski’s clients.
Wilson pointed out that Florida has nearly two dozen military bases and that “critical infrastructure” is a broad term. He asked Forrester whether these restrictions would eliminate any place in Florida where someone from the excluded states could buy property. Forrester said the maps were still being prepared.
In the original complaint filed last May in Tallahassee District Court, attorneys representing Yifan Shen, Zhiming Xu, Xinxi Wang and Yongxin Liu argued that the law violates the U.S. Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses constitution, by “casting a cloud of suspicion over anyone of Chinese descent who wants to buy real estate in Florida.”
But U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor, a Trump appointee, refused to block the law, saying the Chinese nationals had not proven the legislature was motivated by “unlawful hostility” based on race.
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Associated Press writer Terry Spencer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, contributed to this report.