U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand led a bipartisan push on Thursday, March 14, for $575 million in federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to be included in the upcoming government spending package.

 

Gillibrand said the funding bill proposed by the House eliminates advance funding for CPB, which provides direct grant support to PBS and NPR for their public television and radio stations across the country. Her team said zeroing out funding would mean that the future of what was described as “critical educational and news programming,” as well as beloved shows like Sesame Street and America’s Test Kitchen, could be in jeopardy.

 

“PBS is a beloved institution and home to shows that millions of us grew up with,” said Gillibrand. “Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow have helped generations of American children learn to read. PBS NewsHour delivers unbiased reporting every night. PBS also functions as an emergency alert broadcast system, and CPB funding supports the largest non-profit GED program in the country.”

 

She added, “Funding cuts could force many PBS stations off the air, and if cuts like these continue, they could potentially jeopardize many of the programs that millions of Americans know and love. I’m determined to not let that happen. I’m leading a bipartisan push to get $575 million for CPB included in the upcoming spending bill to save public broadcasting.”

Officials from Gillibrand’s office said the Corporation for Public Broadcasting supports over 1,500 local public television and radio stations that provide free, high-quality programming to millions of households across America. They said it provides young children who don’t get the chance to attend preschool with educational content that helps them learn to read; airs highly trusted nightly news programming; and shares critical public safety information during emergencies.

 

They added that local public television stations also provide extensive coverage of local government and elections and host candidate debates, helping Americans stay connected with their elected leaders. Because public television and radio relies heavily on federal funding to operate, particularly in rural communities, they said losing this funding would force many of these stations to reduce or even eliminate much of their programming.

 

The full text of Senator Gillibrand’s letter to Senate appropriators is available to read here.