Why accept funds from the federal government?

CPB was founded to provide funding and support to local radio stations, in recognition to the vital role these stations play in their communities.

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 declared that the “encouragement and support of public telecommunications, while matters of importance for private and local development, are also of appropriate and important concern to the Federal Government.”

“It is in the public interest to encourage the development of programming that involves creative risks and that addresses the needs of unserved and underserved audiences, particularly children and minorities,” the act states.

At the signing, President LB Johnson noted that the creation of public broadcasting announced to the world that the United States “wants more than just material wealth, we in America have an appetite for excellence, too. While we work every day to produce new goods, we want most of all to enrich man’s spirit.”

“Today we rededicate a part of the airwaves – which belong to all the people – and we dedicate them for the enlightenment of all the people,” he said.

To protect the creative and information venture, the act created a private corporation to act as a barrier from “extraneous interference and control.” The CPB takes its appropriations from the federal government and gives 95 percent of that money to support local radio stations, programming, and improvements to the public broadcasting system as a whole.

Federal law forbids the CPB from dictating what local stations can broadcast. The only string attached to the Community Service Grant is that stations operate in an established, non-commercial manner meeting FCC guidelines.

It’s worth noting that the present CPB budget costs American citizens just over $1 per person per year.

Fifteen percent of our $1.3 million budget comes from Community Service Grants by the CPB. More than half comes from the two membership campaigns. Another 30 percent comes from underwriting, events, and non-CPB grants.

SPR is frugal with all of those funds. Much of it goes to programming costs and membership fees for NPR, Public Radio International (Zorba Paster, This American Life) and American Public Media (Marketplace, A Prairie Home Companion). It maintains equipment for three broadcast stations and 10 translator frequencies, reaching remote pockets of our region. Our rent is low, and our offices are generously described as 'recycled.' Most of the 'frills' such as the 1996 grand piano and updated studio equipment are acquired through special fundraising campaigns outside the regular operating budget.