We have news this morning on the Trump administration’s plans to claw back billions of dollars in spending that Congress has already approved. Much of that is foreign aid, and more than a billion dollars is from the budget of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. And that would have a direct impact on Hawaiʻi Public Radio.
HPR News Director Bill Dorman spoke this morning with the very latest.
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HPR'S BILL DORMAN: We've been following this, as you know, since President Trump called on Congress to pull back this funding or to rescind it. We just heard on the NPR headlines, we're approaching the final hours, which continues to be a very contentious debate. It's now down to a final vote in the House that could come as early as this afternoon, Hawaiʻi time, may slip a bit. Last night, the Senate narrowly approved this bill with an amendment which added back some funding for foreign aid but kept that $1.1 billion cut to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Now, those backing the bill say it's a chance to cut government spending. The arguments for keeping the spending are also very familiar. That includes the funding for CPB in particular, and one theme that many lawmakers supporting public broadcasting have raised in this debate is the critical role of the Emergency Alert System. Last night on the Senate floor, Hawaiʻi Sen. Mazie Hirono proposed an amendment addressing that very topic.
U.S. SEN. MAZIE HIRONO, SOUNDBITE: Mr. President, public broadcasters are essential to rural communities, often serving as the only Emergency Alert System when disasters or emergencies occur. These alerts can mean the difference between life or death. Public broadcasters around the country, especially those in rural communities, rely on significant funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which is why Congress has consistently provided CPB funding on a bipartisan basis. By cutting funding for public broadcasting, this bill will jeopardize public broadcasters and the life-saving service they provide. My motion to recommit will ensure that no public broadcasting station that participates in the Emergency Alert System will lose funding as a result of this bill. As natural disasters increase in frequency across our country, this motion will help protect our communities and ensure they can get timely life-saving information if disaster strikes. I urge my colleagues to vote yes on this motion.
DORMAN: Well, that motion did not carry. The Senate approved the rescissions package by a 51-50 vote. So now the House needs to vote on the package that the Senate just passed.
DORMAN: That theme of public broadcasting in times of emergency is likely to be one theme. Just yesterday, there was this powerful earthquake off the coast of Alaska. There was a tsunami warning that was issued for parts of the coast, and Alaska Public Media station KUCB in Unalaska, in the Aleutian Islands, stayed on the air. Eventually, that was downgraded to an advisory and then dropped, but an example in real time of one aspect, certainly, of public broadcasting.
DORMAN: The House needs to finish its work, vote on this by tomorrow. You heard David Folkenflik refer to that midnight, Eastern Time — 6 p.m. tomorrow here in Hawaiʻi, if the House doesn't pass it, it's dead. Could vote later today. Could vote tomorrow. They've been going through some unrelated business on the House floor today.
This story aired on The Conversation on June 17, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.
