Congress is trying to decide if it’s going to cut over $1 billion from public broadcasting. The money goes to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which helps support PBS and NPR. The deadline to make the decision was Friday, July 18.
This all started when Donald Trump asked Congress to take back money that was already approved, which is called a “rescission.” The House of Representatives passed it by just two votes. Now the Senate has to decide too. If they don’t vote in time, the money stays where it is.
PBS and NPR are known for news and educational programs. PBS has shows like Sesame Street and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, which a lot of kids grow up watching. NPR is mostly radio and has a lot of news. They don’t run ads and get money from donations and the government.
If this cut goes through, PBS and NPR wouldn’t totally disappear, since they get help from other places, too. But smaller local stations, especially in more rural areas, could be in real trouble. Some might even have to shut down.
Republicans have said for a long time that these stations are biased and not fair, which is part of why they want to take away the funding. Democrats think it’s unfair to go back on money that was already approved by using something like a rescission.
It‘s all very unusual, considering rescissions don’t get used often. But the rules for them are different, and Trump is hoping that helps get it passed. It’s not yet known what’s going to happen, but it could make a big difference for public media across the country.