Congress moves to eliminate all federal funding for public broadcasting
H.R. 1211 — No Propaganda Act · Filed by Scott Perry (R-PA) · 2 cosponsors · Introduced Feb 11, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill prohibits the federal government from providing any funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) after the bill's enactment, and bars CPB from accepting federal funds. It also rescinds unobligated CPB appropriations from 2023 and 2024. The bill effectively defunds public broadcasting by cutting off all federal support.
Why we flagged it
The bill's sole operative mechanism is elimination of federal funding to CPB. The title 'No Propaganda Act' frames the defunding as anti-propaganda, but the bill itself contains no content restrictions, editorial oversight, or propaganda-prevention measures—it is purely a funding cut.
What the text implies
- The title 'No Propaganda Act' implies CPB content is propagandistic, but the bill contains no findings, evidence, or content-based restrictions—only a funding prohibition. This frames a budget cut as a principled anti-propaganda measure without substantive support.
- Rescission of unobligated 2023–2024 balances (subsection c) claws back funds already appropriated by prior Congresses, preventing CPB from completing projects or commitments made under those appropriations.
- The conforming amendment to § 396(k)(3)(A)(iv)(II) appears to modify how CPB reports or accounts for federal funds, but the text is incomplete in the version provided—the phrase 'inserting before the date of the enactment of the after No Propaganda Act amounts received' is syntactically malformed and may be a processing artifact.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Citizens lose access to publicly funded educational television and radio programming (PBS, NPR member stations) that serves rural areas, low-income households, and children without commercial alternatives. The defunding eliminates a public good funded through tax dollars.
Named in the bill
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), Communications Act of 1934, Section 396, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Public Law 117–328), Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (Public Law 118–47), Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), National Public Radio (NPR)
Where it stands
2 cosponsors: 2 Republicans.
- Feb 11, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Feb 11, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Appropriations and House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Appropriations, for a…”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,465 characters) on Sep 21, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,522 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-21.
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