Sponsors
Prohibits the use of federal funds, directly or indirectly, to support National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). Requires the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to cancel existing direct and indirect funding to those organizations and changes grant rules so public radio and television stations cannot use federal grant money to pay dues to or buy programming from them. Federal agencies must identify and, to the maximum extent permitted by law, stop any direct or indirect funding to the listed organizations and review any remaining contracts or grants to ensure compliance. The law includes usual severability and savings clauses and clarifies it does not create a new private right to sue or alter OMB authority or agency budgets.
After enactment, no Federal funds may, directly or indirectly, be made available to or used to support organizations described in paragraph (2). This includes funds used by a public broadcast station to pay dues to or purchase programming from such an organization when the station is using Federal funds.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting must cancel any direct and indirect funding to the maximum extent allowed by law and must decline to provide future funding to organizations described in paragraph (2). The Corporation must also ensure licensees, permittees, and other recipients of funds under this section do not use Federal funds for those organizations.
Defines the organizations covered by the prohibition: (A) the organization known as 'National Public Radio' as of the date of enactment; (B) the organization known as 'Public Broadcasting Service' as of the date of enactment; (C) any successor organization to NPR or PBS; and (D) any licensee or permittee of NPR or PBS.
The Corporation must revise the Television Community Service Grants General Provisions and Eligibility Criteria and the Radio Community Service Grants General Provisions and Eligibility Criteria to prohibit direct or indirect funding to the organizations described in paragraph (2) and take all other necessary steps to minimize or eliminate indirect funding of such organizations.
Makes technical and conforming amendments to Title III of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 301 et seq.). Specifically, it amends section 396(k) by changing paragraph numbering and text: (A) in paragraph (4), strikes the clause beginning ', unless the governing body' and replaces it with a period; (B) strikes paragraph (9); (C) redesignates paragraphs (10), (11), and (12) as paragraphs (9), (10), and (11), respectively; and (D) in paragraph (9) as redesignated, in subparagraph (D) strikes the words 'paragraphs (4), (5), (8), and (9)' and inserts 'paragraphs (4), (5), and (8)'.
Directly affected: the two named national public media organizations (they must be cut off from federal funding and any existing CPB-directed payments) and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (required to cancel payments and change grant terms). Public radio and television stations that receive federal grant funds will be affected because they will be barred from using those federal funds to pay dues or purchase programming from the named organizations; that could force stations to find new nonfederal revenue sources or change programming. Independent program producers, distributors, and vendors who earn revenue by selling programming or services to public stations or the named organizations may lose customers and contracts. Federal agencies and CPB will incur administrative burdens to identify, stop, or renegotiate funding relationships and to monitor compliance. Audiences could see programming changes or reduced access where stations rely on content or services now restricted.
Additional considerations: enforcement depends on how agencies and CPB interpret "direct or indirect" support; ambiguous scope could lead to legal disputes and litigation over statutory interpretation and constitutional claims (e.g., limitations on funding targeted at specific private organizations). Agencies may need to revise grant terms, award conditions, reporting requirements, and monitoring procedures, producing implementation costs and operational changes. The law does not create a private cause of action, which means enforcement is through agency processes and government action rather than private suits under the new statute itself.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Last progress June 11, 2025 (8 months ago)
Introduced on June 11, 2025 by Marsha Blackburn