A Santa Barbara congressman is blasting passage of federal legislation that cuts $9 billion in already approved funding, including more than a billion dollars for public broadcasting.
Democratic Rep. Salud Carbajal called it a disastrous bill.
Locally, the cuts impact NPR radio stations KCLU, as well as KCBX in San Luis Obispo. KCLU will lose about $300,000 in funding.
Two PBS stations that serve the region are also impacted. Los Angeles-based KOCE serves Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, and San Francisco-based KQED provides PBS programming in San Luis Obispo County.
The Republican package cuts $1.1 billion in funding to public broadcasters and more than $7 billion in foreign aid. Carbajal says the cuts threaten local radio stations, which keep Central Coast families informed, especially during wildfire season.
