Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said his state achieved a “big win” for national security after a Chinese company with ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was required under state law to sell land that it owned near military installations.

Cox held a press conference at the Utah State Capitol on Feb. 12, announcing that Mitime Utah Investment had recently sold the land, after the state sent the Chinese company a letter in November 2025 directing it to divest the property.

“This is a huge win for Utah. It’s a big win for the United States. It’s a win for our servicemembers, and it’s a win for national security,” Cox said.

“This is the first forced divestiture where we sent a letter.

“Utah is not naive to the world around us and what is happening. We recognize that there are certainly threats out there. We have adversaries who are targeting our country and certainly targeting the state of Utah as well.

“We are also home to critical military and intelligence infrastructure that matters to our national security—that protects this nation and protects our allies as well. And that means what happens in Utah matters far beyond the borders of our state and even beyond the borders of our country.”

The property at issue is Burt Brothers Motorpark, a 511-acre motorsports and events venue in Grantsville. According to the motorpark’s website, the facility opened as Miller Motorsports Park in 2006, was rebranded as Utah Motorsports Campus, and later adopted its current name.

In November 2018, Mitime, a subsidiary of China’s Geely Holding Group, purchased the motorpark from Tooele County following a vote by county commissioners, according to a Utah Motorsports Campus statement at the time.

In 2024, a U.S. senator raised concerns about Geely’s close ties to the CCP in a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding Geely’s other subsidiary, Chinese electric vehicle maker Zeekr.

PV3 Enterprises, a Utah-based private investment group, has acquired the motorpark.

In a statement announcing the acquisition, PV3 stated that it is going to “restore the facility, reintroduce it to the public, and bring it back into regular use in a way that serves racers, fans, partners, and the broader community.”

Cox warned that foreign adversaries could use the land for nefarious purposes, such as hacking, spying via unauthorized drone access, and photographing.

“We welcome lawful investment and partnership, but we will not allow our adversarial governments, other adversarial governments to gain leverage over these critical assets in Utah,” Cox said. “Land and liberty are not for sale.”

Legislation

At the press conference, Utah state Rep. Candice Pierucci noted that the property is located near two military installations: the Tooele Army Depot, where the U.S. Army stores and maintains conventional ammunition, and the Utah Test and Training Range.

She described the range as “one of the most critical military testing areas in the United States,” where tests are conducted on “advanced weapon systems and military capabilities.”

The motorpark is located about eight miles by road from the Tooele Army Depot and approximately 69 miles by road from the Utah Test and Training Range.

“It would be concerning that a CCP-owned company had set up shop right next door,” Pierucci said.

She said that the CCP has been a “repeat offender,” with threats “creeping in” through school partnerships, shell companies, and technology contracts that “come with invisible strings.”

“We have no illusions about the CCP’s intentions, and we refuse to look the other way,” Pierucci said.

“As a state, the Chinese Communist Party is not just another foreign investor. It is not a neutral economic actor. It’s a hostile foreign adversary engaged in a long-term strategy to undermine the United States economically, technologically, and militarily.”

Utah law, enacted as House Bill 186 in 2023 and reinforced by House Bill 516 in 2024, bars restricted foreign entities from purchasing land in the state. Specifically, the law prevents companies that are at least 51 percent owned or controlled by the governments of China, Iran, North Korea, or Russia from acquiring land in Utah.

The measure also requires any such entities that already own land in the state to divest those holdings within a specified timeframe or face a forced sale by the state.

Pierucci has been the chief sponsor of both bills.

Thousands of acres have already been divested because of the law, she said, citing Utah’s successful effort to block Cirrus Aircraft from purchasing land next to Provo Airport, about 43 miles south of Salt Lake City.

In July 2025, Cox’s office announced that the state had successfully blocked Cirrus Aircraft, a company majority-owned by Chinese state-owned defense contractor Aviation Industry Corp. of China (AVIC).

AVIC is currently on the Pentagon’s blacklist of Chinese military companies operating directly or indirectly in the United States.

“They’re going right next to military assets,” Pierucci said, referring to China. “It’s incredibly strategic, and they’re playing the long game.”

She is now working to pass House Bill 291, a related measure that would lower the ownership threshold to 25 percent from 51 percent. She said that the change would “close loopholes so that hostile actors cannot hide behind shell companies.”

“Utah is open for business—but not to foreign adversaries,” Pierucci said.