PBS and NPR Face Federal Defunding as White House Pushes to Codify Budget Cuts

In a dramatic escalation of ongoing efforts to defund public media, the White House has formally asked Congress to rescind $1.1 billion in federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a move that could effectively eliminate nearly all federal support for NPR, PBS, and their local affiliates.

According to The New York Times, the proposal, part of a sweeping $9 billion “rescissions package” submitted Tuesday by the Office of Management and Budget, targets 22 programs, including billions in foreign aid. 

The cuts would have a “devastating impact” on public radio and television, particularly in rural and underserved communities, according to NPR CEO Katherine Maher. PBS CEO Paula Kerger warned that Americans could lose “unique local programming and emergency services in times of crisis.” Patricia Harrison, head of the CPB, called the funding “irreplaceable.”

According to The New York Times, the $1.1 billion rollback would dismantle most of the CPB’s forward-funded budget, much of which has already been distributed to stations for the upcoming year. If Congress does not approve the proposal within 45 days, the administration must spend the funds as originally appropriated.

On Capitol Hill, Republican leadership has embraced the rescissions package. “This reflects many of DOGE’s findings and is one of the tools we’re using to restore fiscal sanity,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, now led by Elon Musk.

Still, cracks are forming in the GOP’s support. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska recently defended public broadcasting as “a key part of daily life,” and Senator Susan Collins of Maine has rejected the package’s proposed cuts to PEPFAR, a global AIDS relief initiative credited with saving millions of lives.

Just weeks ago, PBS and Northern Minnesota’s Lakeland PBS filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, D.C., challenging President Trump’s May 1 executive order that called for an immediate halt to all federal funding for NPR and PBS. The 51-page complaint argues that the executive order is both unconstitutional and politically motivated, violating the First Amendment and Congress’s sole authority over federal spending.

“Regardless of any policy disagreements over the role of public television, our Constitution and laws forbid the President from serving as the arbiter of the content of PBS’s programming,” the suit states.

Since returning to office, the Trump administration has launched a wide-ranging effort to defund and reshape arts and cultural institutions. At the Kennedy Center, Trump dismissed the entire board, named himself chairman, and dismantled diversity-focused initiatives, sparking artist resignations, including a planned engagement of Hamilton, and audience backlash.

The administration has also slashed grants from the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities, disbanded the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, and targeted universities and news outlets, part of a broader ideological push critics say threatens cultural independence and expression.