Recently, the House Appropriations Committee advanced legislation proposing increased public media funding, thanks to the collective outreach of our grassroots network.

Over the next few weeks, Congress will make critical decisions about federal funding for public media. Here’s a recap of the actions taken to date, what’s still to come, and how you can support your stations:

U.S. House of Representatives Funding Action

The House Appropriations Committee proposed additional federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and Ready To Learn as part of its annual funding legislation.

The appropriations bills included:

• More resources for CPB. The vast majority of this funding goes to local public radio and television stations to support their public services.
• Increased Interconnection funding, which connects Americans with public media’s programs and emergency communications.
• Increased funding for Ready To Learn. The Department of Education competitive grant program supports the creation of rigorously researched and proven effective early educational content for children and associated community outreach.
• Continued support for the Next Generation Warning System. Administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, this program funds the replacement and upgrades of aging station infrastructure that transmits emergency alerts and warnings and integrates emerging technology to support public safety.

The Committee’s endorsement of increased public media funding is a strong start. However, the process is far from over.

The House of Representatives is expected to vote on a package of funding bills later this month. There could be amendments that seek to cut public media funding. Subscribe for updates to protect the funding we’ve secured in the House.

U.S. Senate Funding Action

The Senate is actively writing their annual funding bills. Advocates represented by Senate Appropriations Committee Members can influence the Senate bills’ recommendations for public media.

Urge your Senators to match the House proposals for public media funding. Send an email or call your Senator to request increased public media funding.

Once the Senate Appropriations bills are drafted, they could be considered by the individual subcommittees, the full Appropriations Committee, and the full Senate.

Eventually, the House and Senate must agree on final funding amounts for each federal program based on the numbers proposed by each chamber. That’s why we need to make our voices heard every step of the way.

We must keep up the momentum until final public media funding is secured. America’s public media stations and the millions who depend on their public services in education, local journalism, public safety, and civil discourse depend on it.