Editorial Note: The Ohio Newsroom was started with a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and is supported by NPR member stations.
The Senate could vote on a so-called rescission bill this week. If approved, it would take back $9 billion that Congress already approved for foreign aid and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which helps fund NPR and PBS.
CPB, an independent nonprofit, allocated more than $13 million in grants to Ohio’s public media television and radio stations in 2024.
The rescission package would mean funding cuts for radio and television stations across the state, including WYSO in Yellow Springs. General Manager Luke Dennis said in an interview with The Ohio Newsroom that 8% of his station’s budget relies on federal funding.
“It would be a different landscape. It would weaken the system terribly,” Dennis said. “We're talking about $545 million a year that would have to be replaced through private fundraising efforts, and it's not gonna rise to that level.”
Congress already allocated $1.1 billion in funding to public media outlets for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 in a bill signed by President Donald Trump in March. But in subsequent months, Trump called public media too liberal and asked lawmakers to rescind funding.
“Federal spending on CPB subsidizes a public media system that is politically biased and is an unnecessary expense to the taxpayer,” the rescission request read.
Since its establishment in 1967 with the Public Broadcasting Act, CPB funding has historically received bipartisan support.
Ohio’s public radio landscape
While the bulk of public radio funding comes from individual donations and community grants, federal funding makes up around 5% of Cincinnati Public Radio’s budget in Cincinnati, 10% of Ideastream Public Media’s in Cleveland and 13% of WOSU Public Media in Columbus.
For WOUB in Athens, federal funding makes up around a quarter of its operating budget, with an additional 16% of its indirect costs being covered by the CPB.
CPB-backed initiatives include rural emergency alerts and early childhood educational programming, like PBS Kids. Its funding also allows public media stations to license music and pool resources for satellite interconnection.
“Potential funding loss would devastate the local-national partnerships that enable us to bring trusted journalism, children’s programming, and educational resources to our community,” a WOSU spokesperson said in a statement to the Ohio Newsroom.
Potential fallout
If the Senate passes the rescission package, rural regions across the country will be hit hardest.
Some rural stations rely on federal funds for nearly half their budget. If they have to go off the air, it will have ripple effects, according to WVXU president, general manager and CEO Richard Eiswerth.
“They are paying money for the dues for the programming at NPR just as we are,” Eiswerth said in an interview on Cincinnati Edition on June 23. “If NPR loses their revenue, their income, what happens to NPR? They will either have to dramatically increase the charges for the programs that they offer or begin to seriously eliminate programs that they offer to us.”
Ohio outlets would need to make cuts to survive. WYSO’s General Manager Dennis said the Dayton area station will have to make swift decisions on an already very lean budget.
“We would have to take a hard look at personnel costs. Before we would do that, we would probably try to renegotiate some other fixed costs like talk to NPR about the fees that we pay to carry their programming,” Dennis said.
WGTE in Toledo foresees some of the same issues. The rescission of funds would mean a “devestating” loss of over $1.2 million for the northwest Ohio public television and radio station.
“It will require WGTE to reduce the programming we purchase from NPR … Possible temporary freezes of vacant positions will also be necessary until the budget can be balanced. Because of the loss of federal funding, WGTE faces the prospect of operating a deficit budget in FY 25/26, despite our best efforts to seek out new revenue sources and eliminate all but essential services,” a WGTE spokesperson said in a statement.
Future of public media
The Trump Administration also has issued an executive order to cease future funding of NPR and PBS, calling the outlets “left-wing propaganda with taxpayer dollars.” NPR has challenged the legality of the order in court.
Ohio public media executives also have pushed back against the criticism. They argue not only does the funding take up a small sliver of the federal budget, it’s being used to ensure local communities have access to objective, unbiased news.
Dennis said Ohio’s public radio stations allow the state to have access to vital information that's not hidden behind a paywall.
“It's an institution, just like a library or a public school system … and it serves the public good,” he said.
