WASHINGTON – April 3, 2026 – Kate Riley, President and CEO of America’s Public Television Stations, made the following statement on President Trump’s fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget released today:
“America’s Public Television Stations are disappointed that President Trump’s FY 2027 budget proposal recommends no federal funding for the locally controlled public television stations that the American people rely on and support funding for, including 65% of people who voted for the President.
“Since all funding for local public media stations was rescinded last year, Americans in every community across the country, especially rural communities, have experienced a loss of essential services that only local, independent public television stations provide. Two stations have already announced their closures and without federal funding, many more local stations have been forced to eliminate or reduce local programs and services, including proven educational services, local history programs, community event coverage, agricultural programming and local public affairs programming, among others. In addition, many stations have been forced to delay much needed infrastructure investments – risking programming and public safety services.
“Failing to restore the federal investment will cause further harm to the communities that depend on their local public media stations every day for public safety, education and community connections. These services are particularly critical in more rural areas, many of which have no other sources of local media.
“The public investment for public media is necessary so local stations can continue to be truly local media in communities big and small, urban and rural, on-air and online, and everything in between.
“The public investment is necessary for our public safety work and the reliable and resilient transmission of lifesaving emergency alerts and warnings throughout the country, regardless of cell and broadband service.
“The public investment is necessary for us to offer the highest-quality, proven-effective educational content and services for free to all American families and classrooms.
“The public investment is necessary for the telling of local stories and the celebration of hometown heroes in a way that only public media can.
“These services are essential for the American people and one of America’s best investments, which amounted to about $1.60 per person per year and was less than one 1/100th of a percent of the federal budget.
“Federal funding for public media is irreplaceable and essential to local public media stations.
“Local stations are beloved and trusted by the vast majority of Americans, across the political spectrum, who support federal funding for public television and rely on the essential lifesaving public safety information, proven educational services and local community connections these stations provide every day for free, regardless of zip code or income level.
“America’s Public Television Stations now look to Congress to respect the clear will of the American people, to honor the long history of bipartisan support for our work, and to restore the federal government’s investment in local public television stations’ essential missions of public safety, education and community connections in the upcoming FY 2027 appropriations process.”
###
About APTS
America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) is a nonprofit membership organization ensuring a strong and financially sound public television system and helping member stations provide essential public services in education, public safety and community connections to their local areas and the American people. For more information, visit www.apts.org.
Contact:
Stacey Karp
202-654-4222
skarp@apts.org