The US House of Representatives passed House Resolution 1516, a bill sponsored by US Representative August Pfluger to bar Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding to US universities with a Confucius Institute, according to a September 10 news release.

According to an October 2023 report from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), Congress restricted federal funding to colleges with Confucius Institutes in 2018. The report notes that nearly all the institutes had closed in the intervening years. The GAO said in that report that there were fewer than five schools that hosted Confucius Institutes, attributing the closures to the loss of federal funding or eligibility for federal funding, as well as pressure from the US government, congressional, or state representatives.

The Chinese government funds Confucius Institutes as a means of promoting Chinese language and cultural education in public schools while facilitating cultural exchanges and supporting international Chinese teaching, the Austin Journal reported. However, some have criticized these institutes as providing a route through which the Chinese government can infiltrate and influence the U.S. education system.

The Heritage Foundation called Confucius Institutes a critical component of China's "soft war" strategy against the U.S., utilized to spread favorable impressions of China. Li Changchun, a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) propaganda leader, called Confucius Institutes "an important part of China’s overseas propaganda setup."

Pfluger is in his second term in the US House of Representatives and represents 20 counties in Texas’ 11th Congressional District, according to his official biography. He is a graduate of the US Air Force Academy and is a Colonel in the Air Force Reserves after spending 20 years as a fighter pilot. He was also an advisor on the National Security Council. He lives in San Angelo with his wife and three daughters, according to his official biography.