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FAQ
Your support is vital to protect the future of Vegas PBS.
These Frequently Asked Questions address what's at risk
and what you can do to help protect federal funding.
- Is PBS being defunded?
The short answer is, not yet. But the White House has made significant progress in getting federal funds reallocated away from PBS.
- Is that the rescissions package?
On June 3, 2025, the White House formally proposed that Congress rescind — or take back — $535 million that’s already been approved for public broadcasting through the year 2027.
The two houses of Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate) must either approve or disapprove the package, based on a majority vote. During that time frame, the Administration can temporarily withhold funds.
On June 12, the House of Representatives voted to pass the rescissions package. Next, it's in the hands of the Senate — which has until July 18 (45 days from the date the rescissions memo was issued) to vote and decide.
- What’s at risk?
Vegas PBS is at risk of losing nearly $4 million over the next two years. What's at stake isn't just commercial-free educational television programming, like PBS Kids. It’s also trusted journalism, your favorite dramas and mysteries, and even local emergency alerts that ensure every Nevadan is informed and protected during crises. PBS also uses federal funding to provide educational content and resources to educators, children, and families that help boost children’s literacy, math, and science skills, from grades preK to 12.
- What can I do to help?
You can show your support for Vegas PBS by emailing and calling your local senators to urge them to vote against the rescissions package. To find out who they are in your district and see a sample message, click here.
- If Congress votes against the rescissions package, does PBS still receive all of its funding?
PBS has already lost some of its essential funding, separate from the rescission package. On May 2, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education terminated the CPB’s 2020-2025 Ready To Learn grant, effective immediately. This grant has historically funded educational programming like Sesame Street and Reading Rainbow. The current grant helped fund the award-winning Molly of Denali, Work It Out Wombats! and Lyla in the Loop.
- How much will the federal government save if it “defunds” PBS?
As a whole, PBS represents about .01% of the total federal budget. In terms of tax dollars, that’s about $1.60 per person annually. Public media receives just 75 cents per Southern Nevadan per year in federal funding, with an incredible return on investment.
- What happens next year?
President Trump’s budget proposal for the 2026 fiscal year recommends eliminating all funding for the CPB. This future budget reallocation would also require a Congressional vote with a majority.
- What about the executive order that orders the CPB to stop distributing federal funds to PBS stations?
On May 1, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order titled “Ending Taxpayer Subsidization Of Biased Media,” which instructed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to stop distributing federal funds to public media outlets, including PBS. However, the CPB is not a federal agency subject to the authority of the executive branch: It’s a non-profit organization authorized by Congress in 1967 to function as a wholly independent entity, for the public good. That means the executive order is unconstitutional.
Vegas PBS has been a trusted public media service in Southern Nevada providing education content, career training, emergency services and community programming to support all ages and stages of life.