Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Heath Shuler today stood up for public radio by voting against H.R. 1076, legislation to eliminate federal funding for National Public Radio (NPR) and prohibit local stations from using federal funding to acquire radio content. The bill passed the House of Representatives, 228-192, with 1 member voting present.
“NPR provides an important public service to more than 30 million listeners across the country every week. In America’s rural communities, especially throughout Western North Carolina, public radio is often the only source of free, reliable national and international news and public safety information,” Rep Shuler said. “This senseless bill would have a devastating impact on Western North Carolina and other rural areas, where funding for public radio is already scarce and stations depend on federal funding to stay on air.”
The majority of federal funding for public radio goes to support programming and more than 21,000 jobs at local community radio stations throughout the country. WCQS-Asheville, WNCW- Spindale, and WETS Johnson City, all of which serve Western North Carolina, relied on federal funding for 25 percent to 35 percent of their budgets in 2009. While H.R. 1076 would force many local radio stations to reduce programming or shut down, the Congressional Budget Office has reported that this bill will produce no savings for the taxpayer and will not reduce the deficit.
“I am disappointed that House Republicans chose focus their efforts in Washington this week on a political stunt rather than creating jobs or reducing the deficit,” Rep. Shuler continued. “Public radio has long provided our communities with high-quality programming and information, and I continue to support federal funding for NPR and its local affiliate stations.”
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