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CBS News
12-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Planned PBS, NPR cuts would overwhelmingly hit outlets in states Trump won, report finds
The looming federal funding cuts to public television and radio would overwhelmingly gut outlets in states won by President Trump in 2024, according to a new congressional report. Approximately 60% of the hundreds of radio and television stations that could suffer funding cuts are in Trump-won states, according to a congressional report obtained by CBS News from Senate Democrats. The organizations that would be affected include public media outlets in cities as large as Houston and Miami, as well as smaller stations in tiny communities like Douglas, Wyoming, which has a population of 6,000 and hosts the Wyoming State Fair. The widespread cuts to public radio and television are a component of a Republican congressional plan to eliminate $9 billion in funding for programs approved before President Trump's second term began. The proposed rescissions package, which is scheduled for a House vote Thursday, includes $1.1 billion in cuts for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which provides funding to NPR and PBS. The cuts to public broadcasting are being touted by the Trump administration and Republicans as an effort to slash taxpayer funding for news media outlets they accuse of being "liberal" or politically biased in their content. Advocates for public broadcasting have lambasted the cuts as destructive, needless and harmful to communities that have very limited sources of local broadcast news. They also deny allegations of political bias. The list of hundreds of TV and radio outlets facing funding cuts shows a broad range of impact. Major public television and radio stations in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Washington, D.C., could each lose nearly $1 million in grants in the coming months. An FM community public radio station in Carbondale, Colorado, which touts itself as "Public access radio that connects community members to one another and the world," received $145,000 in federal grant funding last year. At each of the public media outlets, the list shows reductions that are sizable enough to potentially require staffing cuts, programming reductions or news cutbacks that threaten to exacerbate shortages of local news content. CBS News' review of proposed grant cuts shows Alabama, a state with an estimated 215 public media employees, would lose as much as $3 million in funding for its public television outlets in the coming months. In South Dakota, a sparsely populated state that nonetheless receives $3 million in funds for public broadcasting employees, the funding cuts would gut money for at least 20 media outlets, according to the report provided by congressional aides to CBS News. "The path to better public media is achievable only if funding is maintained. Otherwise, a vital lifeline that operates reliable emergency communications, supports early learning, and keeps local communities connected and informed will be cut off with regrettable and lasting consequences," said Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. "Federal funding for the public broadcasting system is irreplaceable," Harrison said. "Public media serves all — families and individuals, in rural and urban communities — free of charge and commercial free." Both PBS and NPR have sued the Trump administration over previous executive orders cutting their funding, with lawyers for both alleging that among other issues, the cuts violate the First Amendment. PBS CEO Paula Kerger previously said on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" that while PBS only receives 15% of its funding from the federal government, some of its smaller stations receive up to 50% of their funding from federal sources and said the risks to the smaller stations are "existential" if the funding is cut. NPR CEO Katherine Maher has said roughly 1% of the organization's budget comes directly from federal dollars. Some of the many impacted public radio and TV stations have posted messages protesting the proposed cuts in funding. The social media account of a Baltimore public radio station leader said, "This isn't hypothetical—it's real, it's happening, and it places the future of local, trusted public media at serious risk. Let me be clear: this is not a symbolic move. If approved, this action could irreparably damage the local public media." Rural communities, often referred to as "news deserts" because of the lack of local news organizations, would suffer the brunt of the pain. According to a joint statement by Rep. Mark Amodei, a Nevada Republican, and Rep. Dan Goldman, a New York Democrat, "Rural broadcasters face significant challenges in raising private funds, making them particularly vulnerable if government funding is cut." Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat who is the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said in a statement to CBS News, "Trump wants Congress to vote to cut off public radio broadcasts our constituents count on for weather forecasts, emergency alerts, and updates on what's going on in their community—and force layoffs at local TV stations." House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, has championed the cuts and sought to rally support ahead of Thursday's vote on the rescissions package. "House Republicans will fulfill our mandate and continue codifying into law a more efficient federal government," Johnson said in a statement. "This is exactly what the American people deserve." In April, the White House released a statement saying taxpayers had funded NPR and PBS "for too long" and said they've "spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as 'news.'" The White House Office of Management and Budget did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
E&E News
10-06-2025
- Business
- E&E News
Utilities await DOE action on loans to boost grid
A growing chorus of consumer advocates and environmentalists are urging the Department of Energy to lock in billions of dollars in loan guarantees for utilities, arguing that the loans will help cut utility bills for everyday Americans as prices spike nationwide. The $23 billion in loans rolled out in the waning days of the Biden administration — much of which would go to Midwest states that voted for Trump in November — could trigger big investments in new transmission lines, batteries, renewable energy and natural gas infrastructure. But to move ahead, the loans need approval from the Trump team. Advertisement If the DOE elects to close the loans, advocates argue the financing will help boost electric reliability and control the high costs of upgrading and expanding infrastructure. And all of that is needed as artificial intelligence projects and broad electrification of the economy drive a surge in U.S. electricity demand. 'These loans are critically important at a time of growing load, especially for affordability,' said Christian Fong, senior associate in RMI's carbon-free electricity program. A recent report from the consultancy ICF International says U.S. electricity demand is likely to grow a whopping 25 percent between 2023 and 2030, and an even more staggering 78 percent by 2050. Citing demand growth and risks of disruption, Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued directives in recent weeks to force utilities to keep fossil fuel plants running. While the precise terms of the DOE loans are kept confidential, the guarantees generally mean lower interest rates than typically offered by banks. That's especially important as interest rates keep the cost of private capital relatively high. The Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates at current levels after a meeting later this month despite pressure from President Donald Trump and some industries to cut rates to free up more money for investment. Meanwhile, the Biden administration singled out 'investment-grade utilities' as lower risk than other borrowers. 'Of course, one of the benefits of a loan guarantee is that you can access that capital for much cheaper since the federal government is guaranteeing the loan,' said Tyson Slocum, the director of Public Citizen's energy program. But the fight for the loans comes at a sensitive time for the DOE's Loan Programs Office. Republicans and the Trump administration, including Wright, routinely blast the previous administration for pushing through eleventh-hour grants and loans, including the conditional commitments made in January for loan guarantees to DTE, Consumers Energy, Alliant Energy, PacifiCorp and other utilities. The Senate is also now taking up the 'big, beautiful bill' reconciliation legislation, which House members used to claw back some LPO funding. 'A key tool' In testimony at the Senate Appropriations Committee in May, Wright said the Biden administration 'lent or committed $93 billion' between Election Day in November and the inauguration of Trump, adding that he's 'moving slow' in evaluating the loans to ensure they fit with the Trump administration agenda. In total, the Biden team closed $61 billion in loans and left $47 billion in conditional commitments, much of which, including the utility loan guarantees, could be closed under Trump. Despite the headwinds for the loan office, Wright called it 'a key tool.' 'We do need to make sure we have funding available in the Loan Programs Office because, used judiciously, it's a way to leverage private capital to make things happen fast,' he told Senate appropriators. The Department of Energy budget proposal for fiscal 2026 urges $750 million in new credit subsidies to help finance the Loan Programs Office Title 17 program, which deals with nonvehicle projects and was used to strike the tentative utility loans. The DOE's fiscal 26 budget lays out the administration's priorities to Congress as it begins to craft annual appropriations legislation, a separate process from the budget reconciliation debate. Some of the Trump administration's free-market allies, however, are calling on DOE to nix loans altogether. Tom Pyle, president of the American Energy Alliance, said Republicans should 'terminate' the office. 'Ideally, all of the loans issued after the election and before President Trump assumed office should be halted,' Pyle said. 'The federal government isn't a bank. There is no reason they should be issuing loans to companies in the first place.' A month before the tentative utility loan guarantees were announced in January, the DOE's inspector general called on the loan office to suspend financing, arguing that DOE was not properly safeguarding against conflicts of interest. Trump later fired the inspector general, along with others at different departments and agencies. Other conservatives, like Michael Chamberlain, a Trump first-term veteran who now leads the conservative watchdog Protect the Public's Trust, urged DOE officials to judge the loans based on how closely they align with the president's agenda. 'They need to evaluate if these loans and the projects that they're funding are consistent with the things they want to do,' Chamberlain said. In a statement to POLITICO's E&E News, a spokesperson for DOE said it's 'conducting a department-wide review to ensure all activities follow the law, comply with applicable court orders and align with the Trump administration's priorities.' Upgrading infrastructure The loans would deliver money to a sprawling list of grid projects. The loan to the Michigan utility DTE includes $1.6 billion to upgrade gas distribution lines and metering and another $7-billion-plus toward renewable generation and storage. Another $5.2 billion would go to Michigan utility Consumers Energy for solar and wind generation, bringing the total state's share of the loan packages to roughly $14 billion. American Electric Power would get $1.6 billion for transmission projects across multiple states, while the PacifiCorp loan would put $3.5 billion toward transmission lines meant to boost overall capacity and reduce curtailment of wind power. Jersey Central Power & Light Co. would also get more than $700 million for transmission. For now, the utilities are still working to secure the loans. 'The conditional commitment from the Department of Energy, if completed, could help lower costs for the customers we serve through lower-interest federal loans,' Brian Wheeler, a spokesperson for Consumers Energy in Michigan, said in an email. 'Consumers Energy is continuing to work with the administration to achieve the shared goal of doing what's best for the Michigan customers we serve.' David Eskelsen, a spokesperson for PacifiCorp, which serves Utah, Idaho, Oregon and other states, said the company 'continues to work with the U.S. Department of Energy on the loan guarantee terms and anticipates that the review and negotiation process will take several weeks to several months to complete.' Days before the inauguration, the Biden loan team closed a $15 billion loan guarantee to Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the LPO's largest loan ever. PG&E spokesperson Jennifer Robison said in an email that 'drawing down that lower-cost loan' could save the company's roughly 16 million customers over $1 billion in interest costs over the life of the loan. 'PG&E has met several times with the DOE to talk about the infrastructure investments we are making in California, which support the administration's goals to power the technology industry and secure our country's energy independence,' Robison said. But in a recent filing with state regulators, PG&E said that 'uncertainty' around the loan was one reason that it was requesting a slight bump in customer bills in 2026, along with tariffs and wildfire costs. Utilities are required by law to pass their savings from DOE loans onto customers. The Inflation Reduction Act, which Democrats passed alone in 2022 and heralded as the biggest climate legislation in U.S. history, says utilities have to provide 'an assurance' to deliver 'financial benefit' to customers. Rising costs On the campaign trail last year, Trump pledged to slash energy bills in half. But federal data shows that electricity prices are poised to rise faster than inflation at least through next year. A recent report from the nonprofit PowerLines shows residential electricity costs have gone up nearly 30 percent since 2021, while natural gas costs have increased nearly 40 percent since 2019. High interest rates are not the only headwind facing utilities and the energy sector. Energy experts say Trump's trade wars, triggered by the most aggressive tariffs by an American president in a century, threaten to spike the costs of building new energy infrastructure. On Tuesday, Trump doubled steel and aluminum tariffs to 50 percent. Recent polling from PowerLines, conducted by Ipsos, finds that nearlythree-quarters of Americans are concerned that utility bills will rise over the coming year. 'We are seeing an unprecedented affordability crisis across the U.S. when it comes to rising utility bills and rising electricity prices, and that's something that's afflicting, not just one or two regions here and there, but frankly the whole country,' said Charles Hua, executive director of PowerLines. Hua said the DOE loan guarantees could pare down costs. 'Utilities are looking at DOE loan financing as an opportunity to put some downward pressure on electric prices,' Hua said. 'For a lot of utilities, this is an attractive option because it means they can reduce the cost of capital for some of these projects.' RMI's Fong said the loans align with the Trump administration's agenda. 'The new administration is trying to prioritize energy abundance and slashing electric rates at the same time,' Fong said. 'The LPO loans and tax credits are the preeminent way to do that. I'm hopeful the administration will see how beneficial these tools are.'
