Kansas Republican wants Biden officials to investigate company coming to Johnson County

Rep. Jake LaTurner on Monday called on the Biden administration to investigate a company planning a $95 million investment in Johnson County.

LaTurner, a Kansas Republican, wrote to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, asking for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to look into allegations that Cnano Technology U.S. is working with the Chinese Communist Party.

The committee has the power to examine foreign investments in the United States for potential national security risks.

“I have strong concerns about granting a company with proven and significant ties to the CCP permission to operate as a critical component supplier to the burgeoning field of electronics and battery production, particularly so close to sensitive military and national security assets,” LaTurner wrote.

“We must do everything within our power to prevent CCP-backed companies from expanding their foothold in American supply chains.”

Cnano specializes in making carbon nanotubes and graphene, which are used in electric car batteries. The proposed investment came after Panasonic announced plans to create a $40 billion electric battery plant in De Soto. Cnano’s new factory will be at the New Century Commerce Center — about 21 miles from the Kansas City National Security Campus, 35 miles from Fort Leavenworth and 70 miles from Whiteman Airforce Base in Missouri.

The Star failed to get through to a number listed on the company’s website and did not receive a reply from the only email address listed on the company’s website.

LaTurner alleges Cnano Jiangsu, the parent company of the U.S. branch, participated in a program intended for companies to secretly collect information about U.S. technology. He also alleges that it participated in the Chinese Communist Party’s United Work Front Development Program, which was the subject of a House committee memo warning that the programs intention was to gain access to advanced technology.

LaTurner’s push against the company — which promised to bring more than 100 jobs to Johnson County — comes as Republicans have become increasingly concerned about China’s influence on U.S. companies. GOP-controlled measures in Congress and in the Kansas Legislature have been introduced with the aim of preventing foreign investment in farmland, with some specifically targeting Chinese investment.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, also banned the use of TikTok on government issued devices in 2022. TikTok is owned by a Beijing-based company and FBI Director Christopher Wray has accused it of being a tool to collect information on Americans.

The Johnson County factory is not being constructed in LaTurner’s House district. Instead, it’s in an area represented by Rep. Sharice Davids, a Democrat, who visited New Century in September.

Davids’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.