Future of Local News Act of 2021
Bill: S.1601 | Sponsor: Sen. Schatz, Brian (D-HI)
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications

Summary:
Future of Local News Act of 2021
This bill establishes the Future of Local News Committee to examine, report on, and make recommendations related to the state of local news and the ability of local news to meet the information needs of the people of the United States.
The duties of the committee include (1) examining the implications of the loss of local newspapers, digital news outlets, and broadcasting outlets; (2) assessing the impact of the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic and whether the Paycheck Protection Program has had beneficial effects on local news organizations; and (3) assessing and examining existing and potential means of supporting local news production.
The committee must recommend mechanisms that the federal government can create and implement to support the production of local news, such as the possible creation of a new national endowment for local journalism or the reform and expansion of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

To establish the Future of Local News Committee to examine and report 
  on the role of local news gathering in sustaining democracy in the 
   United States and the factors contributing to the demise of local 
     journalism, and to propose policies and mechanisms that could 
 reinvigorate local news to meet the critical information needs of the 
            people of the United States in the 21st century.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Future of Local News Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds and declares the following:
            (1) The United States of America was founded on the press 
        freedom principle enshrined in the First Amendment to the 
        Constitution, declaring that ``Congress shall make no law . . . 
        abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press . . . .''.
            (2) Democracy demands wisdom and vision in its citizens, 
        and an informed citizenry depends on accurate and unbiased news 
        reporting to inform the people's judgments.
            (3) Thomas Jefferson famously and wisely wrote, ``[W]ere it 
        left to me to decide whether we should have a government 
        without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should 
        not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.''.
            (4)(A) According to research by the University of North 
        Carolina School of Media and Journalism, Center for Innovation 
        and Sustainability in Local Media:
                    (i) The United States has lost more than 2,100 
                local print outlets since 2004.
                    (ii) More than 200 counties in the United States 
                have no newspaper at all, creating a news shortage for 
                the 3,200,000 residents of those counties.
                    (iii) Of the remaining counties, more than half, or 
                1,528, have only one newspaper, often a weekly 
                newspaper, to cover populations ranging from under 
                1,000 to more than 1,000,000 residents.
                    (iv) More than half of all United States newspapers 
                have changed owners in the past decade, and in 2018 
                just 25 companies owned two-thirds of all daily 
                newspapers.
                    (v) Of the surviving 6,700 newspapers in the United 
                States, at least 1,000 qualify as ``ghost newspapers'', 
                or newspapers ``whose reporting staffs are so 
                significantly reduced that they can no longer provide 
                much of the breaking news or public service journalism 
                that once informed readers about vital issues in their 
                communities''.
                    (vi) Rural counties are among the counties most 
                deeply impacted. More than 500 of the 2,100 newspapers 
                that have closed or merged since 2004 have been in 
                rural counties.
            (B) According to the Pew Research Center, total newsroom 
        employment (meaning in newspapers, television, radio, and 
        digital) dropped by roughly 25 percent from 2008 to 2018, while 
        the plunge in newspaper newsrooms alone was much worse, at 47 
        percent.
            (C) According to the program ``On the Media'' of WNYC 
        Studios, beat reporting, meaning the day-to-day coverage of a 
        particular field that allows a journalist to develop expertise 
        and cultivate sources, has been gutted.
            (D) Freedom of Information Act requests submitted by local 
        newspapers to local, State, and Federal agencies fell by nearly 
        50 percent between 2005 and 2010, demonstrating a significant 
        drop in the extent to which reporters request government 
        records.
            (E) According to the Pew Research Center, newspapers alone 
        lost more than $35,000,000,000 in advertising revenue between 
        2004 and 2018.
            (F) A 2018 study by American Indian Media Today found that 
        the number of American Indian print media sources has shrunk 
        dramatically in recent years, from 700 media outlets in 1998 to 
        only 200 in 2018.
            (5) According to the Native American Journalists 
        Association, Tribal news outlets are often dependent on Tribal 
        governments for funding, but most Tribal news outlets lack the 
        policy structure necessary to fully protect journalistic 
        independence.
            (6) As a result, freedoms of speech and press among Tribal 
        nations are inconsistent, as Tribal media journalists report 
        experiencing punitive budgetary restrictions, censorship, 
        required prior approval of content, and workplace harassment in 
        pursuit of Tribal reporting.
            (7) In its 2019 call-to-action report, ``Losing the News: 
        The Decimation of Local Journalism and the Search for 
        Solutions'', PEN America proposed ``a major reimagining of the 
        local news space, in which local reporting is re-conceptualized 
        as a public good'', calling on society and government to 
        urgently address the alarming demise of local journalism.
            (8) Half a century ago, Congress perceived that the 
        commercial television industry would not on its own provide the 
        educational and public interest broadcasting that was 
        appropriate and necessary for the country, and, informed by an 
        independent report prepared by the Carnegie Commission on 
        Educational Television, saw fit to create the Corporation for 
        Public Broadcasting, which has since ensured that radio and 
        television include public interest educational and reporting 
        programs, using annually appropriated funds.
            (9) In order to determine an appropriate course of action 
        to preserve and sustain local news across the United States, 
        including in all States, territories, insular communities, and 
        Tribal areas, it is desirable to establish a Federal advisory 
        committee on the future of local news to prepare a report that 
        would make recommendations to Congress.

SEC. 3. FUTURE OF LOCAL NEWS COMMITTEE.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established an advisory committee to 
be known as the ``Future of Local News Committee'' (in this section 
referred to as the ``Committee'').
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of the Committee is to--
            (1) examine the state of local news and the ability of 
        local news to sustain democracy by meeting the critical 
        information needs of the people of the United States; and
            (2) provide recommendations on mechanisms that the Federal 
        Government can create and effectively implement to support 
        production of professional, independent, and high-quality local 
        news to meet the needs of the public, which recommendations, in 
        addition to any other proposals deemed appropriate, may explore 
        the possible creation of a new national endowment for local 
        journalism, or the reform and expansion of the Corporation for 
        Public Broadcasting or another appropriate institution, to make 
        public funds a part of a multi-faceted approach to sustaining 
        local news.
    (c) Membership.--
            (1) Composition.--The Committee shall be composed of 13 
        members, of whom--
                    (A) 2 shall be appointed by the majority leader of 
                the Senate;
                    (B) 2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of 
                the Senate;
                    (C) 2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of the 
                House of Representatives;
                    (D) 2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of 
                the House of Representatives;
                    (E) 2 shall be appointed by the Chairman of the 
                Board of Directors of the Corporation for Public 
                Broadcasting;
                    (F) 2 shall be appointed by the Chairperson of the 
                National Endowment for the Humanities; and
                    (G) 1 shall be appointed by the Chief Executive 
                Officer of the United States Agency for Global Media.
            (2) Criteria for service on the committee.--To the extent 
        practicable, the Committee shall include members with relevant 
        expertise, such as individuals in the following positions:
                    (A) Print media news editor.
                    (B) Digital-native or digital-first news editor.
                    (C) Broadcast news editor.
                    (D) Local county editor or journalist of a news 
                outlet with circulation or readership of not more than 
                75,000.
                    (E) Print media journalist or editor for a news 
                outlet that serves national readership.
                    (F) Nonprofit news outlet journalist or editor.
                    (G) Broadcast news reporter who works for a local 
                broadcast outlet serving a single community or 
                geographic area.
                    (H) A research expert on the state of local news 
                and the phenomenon of the industry's revenue loss and 
                overall contraction during last 10 or more years.
                    (I) Business leader in the media industry.
                    (J) Labor union leader in the media industry.
                    (K) Dean or professor at a university school of 
                journalism.
                    (L) Civil society representative from a nonpartisan 
                organization that examines the nature of the local news 
                crisis.
                    (M) Editor or other senior professional of a 
                regional ethnic media outlet serving communities in 
                which English is a second language.
                    (N) Editor or other senior professional of a Tribal 
                news outlet or a news outlet serving American Indian, 
                Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian communities.
            (3) Diversity.--To the extent practicable, the Committee 
        shall--
                    (A) include members from diverse regions of the 
                country and reflect the experience of rural, urban, 
                suburban, insular, and Tribal communities; and
                    (B) reflect the gender, racial, and ethnic 
                diversity of the United States.
            (4) Designation of alternates.--If a member of the 
        Committee is unable to serve on the Committee for the duration 
        of the Committee, the official who had appointed the resigning 
        committee member shall appoint an alternate not later than 30 
        days after the member withdraws or becomes unable to serve.
            (5) Chairperson.--The chairperson of the Committee shall be 
        elected by the Committee from among the members by a majority 
        vote at the initial meeting.
            (6) Term of membership.--Members of the Committee shall 
        serve until the date on which the Committee terminates under 
        subsection (h).
            (7) Compensation.--Members of the Committee shall not be 
        compensated for membership on the Committee but may be allowed 
        reimbursement for travel and incidental expenses, including per 
        diem in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons 
        employed intermittently in the Government service are allowed 
        expenses under section 5703(b) of title 5, United States Code.
    (d) Duties.--The duties of the Committee are as follows:
            (1) To examine the implications for the democracy of the 
        United States of the disappearance of so many local newspapers, 
        digital news outlets, and broadcasting outlets--
                    (A) in every State and territory;
                    (B) in rural, urban, suburban, insular, and Tribal 
                communities, of the United States; and
                    (C) that serve Black communities and non-English-
                speaking communities.
            (2) To assess--
                    (A) the impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on 
                the demise of the news industry; and
                    (B) whether the Paycheck Protection Program set 
                forth in section 7(a)(36) of the Small Business Act (15 
                U.S.C. 636(a)(36)) has had beneficial effects on local 
                news organizations.
            (3) To assess the effectiveness of existing Federal 
        statutes (including the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and the 
        antitrust laws), regulations, institutions (including the 
        Corporation for Public Broadcasting), and programs in 
        supporting the production of local news.
            (4) To examine potential new mechanisms for public funding 
        for the production of local news to meet the critical 
        information needs of the people of the United States and 
        address systemic inequities in media coverage and 
        representation throughout the country.
            (5) To consider issues of transparency and other 
        guardrails, such as editorial independence from government 
        actors and a distinct, independent legal and financial 
        structure for the funding institution, which must be addressed 
        if public funding is viewed in principle as one path forward to 
        support production of local news.
    (e) Powers of the Committee.--
            (1) Hearings.--The Committee may, for the purpose of 
        carrying out this section, hold hearings, sit and act at times 
        and places, take testimony, and receive evidence as the 
        Committee considers appropriate.
            (2) Powers of members and agents.--Any member of the 
        Committee may, upon authorization by the Committee, take any 
        action that the Committee is authorized to take under this 
        section.
            (3) Obtaining official data.--Subject to applicable privacy 
        laws and relevant regulations, the Committee may secure 
        directly from any department or agency of the United States 
        information and data necessary to enable it to carry out this 
        section. Upon written request of the chairperson of the 
        Committee, the head or acting representative of that department 
        or agency shall furnish the requested information to the 
        Committee not later than 30 days after receipt of the request.
    (f) Operating Rules and Procedure.--
            (1) Initial meeting.--The Committee shall meet not later 
        than 30 days after the date on which a majority of the members 
        of the Committee have been appointed.
            (2) Meetings.--The Committee shall convene some of its 
        public meetings in various regions of the country.
            (3) Voting.--Each member of the Committee shall have 1 
        vote.
            (4) Recommendations.--The Committee shall adopt 
        recommendations only upon a majority vote.
            (5) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Committee 
        shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may 
        hold meetings, gather information and evidence, and review 
        draft reports from staff.
    (g) Staff.--
            (1) Personnel.--The chairperson of the Committee may 
        appoint staff to inform, support, and enable committee members 
        in the fulfillment of their responsibilities. A staff member 
        may not be a local, State, or Federal elected official or be 
        affiliated with or employed by such an elected official during 
        the duration of the Committee.
            (2) Expert consultants.--As needed, the Committee may 
        commission intermittent research or other information from 
        experts and provide stipends for engagement consistent with 
        relevant statutes and regulations.
    (h) Duration.--The Committee shall terminate 60 days after the date 
on which the Committee presents the findings, conclusions, and 
recommendations of the Committee at the public hearing described in 
subsection (i)(3).
    (i) Report.--
            (1) Submittal of report.--Not later than 1 year after the 
        date of the initial meeting of the Committee, the chairperson 
        of the Committee shall submit to Congress a comprehensive 
        report on the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the 
        Committee in furtherance of the purpose of the Committee under 
        subsection (b).
            (2) Public access to report.--The report submitted to 
        Congress under paragraph (1) shall be publicly available online 
        for free.
            (3) Hearing and implementation.--After the Committee 
        submits the report under paragraph (1), the appropriate 
        committees of Congress may hold hearings at which the Committee 
        may present the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of 
        the Committee as laid out in the report.
    (j) Applicability of FACA.--Except as provided in subsection (h), 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall apply to the 
Committee.
    (k) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Committee $1,000,000 to carry out this section.
                                 <all>