Public elementary and middle/high schools would lose access to federal education money if they have ties to the Chinese government—like hosting a Confucius Institute or Confucius Classroom (programs funded by China that offer Chinese language and culture instruction) or accepting teaching materials, staff, or funding tied to the Chinese government. The Department of Education, the federal agency that distributes school funding and sets compliance rules, would have to notify schools of this rule and could grant exceptions if a school already has a contract with one of these programs and can show it actually benefits the school and serves U.S. interests. In practice, this mainly affects schools that currently have partnerships with China-funded language or cultural programs, who would need to end those partnerships or get a waiver to keep receiving federal funds.