I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 726 

To prohibit Federal funding of National Public Radio and the use of Federal 

funds to acquire radio content. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 30, 2017 

Mr. LAMBORN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To prohibit Federal funding of National Public Radio and 

the use of Federal funds to acquire radio content. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. PROHIBITION ON FEDERAL FUNDING OF NA4 TIONAL PUBLIC RADIO AND RADIO CONTENT 

5 ACQUISITION. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—No Federal funds may be made 

7 available— 

8 (1) to an organization that is incorporated as of 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act for each of the 


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1 purposes described in subsection (c), or to any suc2 cessor organization; 

3 (2) for payment of dues to an organization de4 scribed in paragraph (1); or 

5 (3) for the acquisition of radio programs (in6 cluding programs to be distributed or disseminated 

7 over the Internet) by or for the use of a radio broad8 cast station that is a public broadcast station (as de9 fined in section 397(6) of the Communications Act 

10 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 397(6))). 

11 (b) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.— 

12 (1) OTHER PURPOSES.—Paragraphs (2) and 

13 (3) of subsection (a) shall not be construed to pro14 hibit the making available of Federal funds to any 

15 entity, including an entity that engages in the pay16 ment described in such paragraph (2) or the acquisi17 tion described in such paragraph (3), for purposes 

18 other than such payment or acquisition. 

19 (2) RADIO CONTENT ACQUISITION BY BROAD20 CASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS OR DEFENSE MEDIA

21 ACTIVITY.—Subsection (a)(3) shall not be construed 

22 to apply to the acquisition of radio programs by the 

23 Broadcasting Board of Governors or the Defense 

24 Media Activity. 


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1 (c) PURPOSES DESCRIBED.—The purposes described 

2 in this subsection are the following: 

3 (1) To propose, plan and develop, to acquire, 

4 purchase and lease, to prepare, produce and record, 

5 and to distribute, license and otherwise make avail6 able radio programs to be broadcast over non7 commercial educational radio broadcast stations, 

8 networks and systems. 

9 (2) To engage in research study activities with 

10 respect to noncommercial educational radio pro11 gramming and broadcasting. 

12 (3) To lease, purchase, acquire and own, to 

13 order, have, use and contract for, and to otherwise 

14 obtain, arrange for and provide technical equipment 

15 and facilities for the production, recording and dis16 tribution of radio programs for broadcast over non17 commercial educational radio stations, networks and 

18 systems. 

19 (4) To establish and maintain one or more serv20 ice or services for the production, duplication, pro21 motion and circulation of radio programs on tape, 

22 cassettes, records or any other means or mechanism 

23 suitable for noncommercial educational transmission 

24 and broadcast thereof. 


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1 (5) To cooperate and participate with foreign 

2 broadcasting systems and networks in all aspects of 

3 international radio programming and broadcasting. 

4 (6) To develop, prepare and publish informa5 tion, data, reports and other materials in support of 

6 or relating to noncommercial educational radio pro7 gramming and broadcasting. 

8 (7) To otherwise forward and advance the de9 velopment, production, distribution and use of non10 commercial educational radio programs, materials 

11 and services, and to assist and support noncommer12 cial educational radio broadcasting pursuant to the 

13 Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, as it may from 

14 time to time be amended. 

15 (d) FEDERAL FUNDS DEFINED.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

17 ‘‘Federal funds’’ means, with respect to receipt by a 

18 non-Federal entity from the Federal Government, 

19 the following: 

20 (A) Grants. 

21 (B) Loans. 

22 (C) Property. 

23 (D) Cooperative agreements. 

24 (E) Direct appropriations. 


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1 (2) GRANTS OR SUBGRANTS FROM NON-FED2 ERAL ENTITY.—Such term also includes grants or 

3 subgrants from Federal funds made available to a 

4 non-Federal entity. 

5 (e) CHANGES TO FUNDING FORMULA.—Section 

6 396(k)(3)(A) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

7 U.S.C. 396(k)(3)(A)) is amended— 

8 (1) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘fiscal year’’ and 

9 all that follows and inserting ‘‘fiscal year, such 

10 amounts shall be available for distribution among 

11 the licensees and permittees of public radio stations 

12 pursuant to paragraph (6)(B).’’; and 

13 (2) in clause (v)(II), by striking ‘‘clause (ii)(II) 

14 and (III)’’ and inserting ‘‘clause (iii)’’. 

15 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 396 of the 

16 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 396) is amend17 ed— 

18 (1) in subsection (g)(2)— 

19 (A) in the matter before clause (i) of sub20 paragraph (B), by inserting ‘‘(except for the ac21 quisition of radio programs)’’ after ‘‘public tele22 communications services’’; and 

23 (B) in subparagraph (C), by inserting 

24 ‘‘(except for the acquisition of radio programs)’’ 

25 after ‘‘public telecommunications services’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (k)— 

2 (A) in the 1st sentence of paragraph 

3 (3)(B)(i)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘and subparagraph 

5 (A)(iii)(II)’’; and 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘or radio’’; 

7 (B) in the 3rd sentence of paragraph 

8 (6)(B), by striking ‘‘paragraph (3)(A)(iii)(I)’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘paragraph (3)(A)(iii)’’; and 

10 (C) in paragraph (7)— 

11 (i) by striking ‘‘(iii)(I)’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘(iii)’’; and 

13 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(except for the ac14 quisition of radio programming)’’ before 

15 the period at the end; and 

16 (3) in subsection (l)(4)— 

17 (A) in the matter before clause (i) of sub18 paragraph (B), by striking ‘‘(iii)(II)’’ and in19 serting ‘‘(iii)’’; 

20 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘sub21 section (k)(3)(A)(iii)(III)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub22 section (k)(3)(A)(iii)’’; and 

23 (C) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘sub24 section (k)(3)(A) (ii)(III) or (iii)(II)’’ and inVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 03, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H726.IH H726

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1 serting ‘‘subsection (k)(3)(A)(ii)(II) or sub2 section (k)(3)(A)(iii)’’. 

Æ 


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