WASHINGTON – February 28, 2024 – America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) today presented the Champion of Public Broadcasting Award to Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee responsible for the majority of public broadcasting’s federal funding.
The Champion of Public Broadcasting Award is the highest given by APTS, to federal and State government leaders and others who have made extraordinary contributions to the work of public television.
As the chair of the Senate Labor Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Baldwin recommended continuing record funding levels for the public media accounts under her subcommittee’s jurisdiction, despite an overall budget agreement among the Senate, the House of Representatives and the White House that restricted spending to fiscal year 2023 levels. This funding, part of the larger LHHSED bill crafted by Senator Baldwin and ranking Republican Senator Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV), was reported out of the full Appropriations Committee by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 26-2.
By contrast, the House LHHSED subcommittee proposal to eliminate public media funding altogether was not reported out of Committee.
As a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Senator Baldwin also worked to ensure the reauthorization of the Ready To Learn program during the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which resulted in the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act. Ready To Learn is a competitive grant program at the Department of Education that uses the power of public television’s on-air, online, mobile and on-the-ground educational content and engagement to build the math and reading skills of children between the ages of two and eight, especially those from low-income families.
“Senator Baldwin has been a stalwart and effective champion of public broadcasting in countless ways for decades,” said APTS president and CEO Patrick Butler. “She recognizes the valuable services public broadcasting provides to the people of Wisconsin and throughout our nation, and how vital it is to safeguard the highly cost-effective federal investments in public broadcasting’s essential public safety, education and civic leadership services. And she has dramatically demonstrated that bipartisanship can flourish even in challenging budgetary and political conditions when talented lawmakers wish to make it so.
“America’s Public Television Stations are profoundly grateful for Senator Baldwin’s leadership and support, and it is my honor to present her with the well-deserved 2024 Champion of Public Broadcasting Award.”
“Public television is a reliable source of high-quality information for millions of Americans,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin. “Whether it’s local news or national broadcasts, Americans rely on our public broadcasting stations to know what’s happening in their communities, stay up to date on the issues that impact them, and learn from educational programs that the whole family can enjoy. Our nation’s public broadcasters provide an invaluable service to our country and I am proud to support them.”
Senator Tammy Baldwin has committed her life’s work to public service because she has a deep commitment to making a difference in the lives of Wisconsin’s working families. In the proud tradition of Wisconsin’s state motto, Forward, she believes that we must always work together to help provide fairness, equality, and economic opportunity for all.
Senator Baldwin graduated from Madison West High School and went on to double-major in political science and mathematics at Smith College. In 1989, she received her law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School. In 1986, while in law school, she served on the Madison Common Council, filling an aldermanic vacancy.
In 1998, Wisconsin’s 2nd Congressional District shattered the state’s glass ceiling and elected Senator Baldwin as the state’s first female member of Congress and the nation’s first openly gay challenger sent to Congress. She served seven terms in the House of Representatives, serving on the Budget Committee, the Judiciary Committee, and the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Elected to the U.S. Senate on November 6, 2012, Senator Baldwin won a hard-fought race and made history as Wisconsin's first woman to serve in the U.S. Senate and the first openly gay member elected to the U.S. Senate. In 2018, Senator Baldwin was re-elected by the people of Wisconsin with 55.4% of the vote.
In the Senate, Senator Baldwin is committed to working across party lines to strengthen the essential pillars of economic security for working families: investments in education and workforce readiness, building a strong Made in Wisconsin manufacturing and agriculture economy, quality health care for all Americans, and protecting the retirement security of today’s seniors and future generations.
Senator Baldwin serves on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and the Senate Appropriations Committee. She is also Chair of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Fisheries, Climate Change, and Manufacturing, and Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies.
The Champion of Public Broadcasting Award was presented to Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) during the APTS Public Media Summit on Wednesday, February 28, 2024.
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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 civic leadership to the American people. For more information, visit www.apts.org.
Contact:
Stacey Karp
202-654-4222
skarp@apts.org