The Richmond Times Dispatch reports that Commonwealth Public Broadcasting Corporation will be making cuts to the groups entire educational services department and the Community Idea Stations. The 17 layoffs may only scratch the surface. The article does not mention the impact on other public broadcasting entities in the state of Virginia.
There's more in this article by Wesley Hester.
Update
The cuts go beyond the Commonwealth Public Broadcasting Corporation in the Richmond area. All of public broadcasting that has state tax support will feel the effects of the cuts in Virginia. Blue Ridge PBS and WVTF-FM are facing cuts that take effect July first. According to an article in the Roanoke Times, the cuts could affect programming, educational outreach and jobs. The cuts represent 11% of the budget for Blue Ridge PBS.
When Governor Bob McDonnell first trimmed the public broadcasting budget in 2011 with a line item veto he said, “In today’s free market, with hundreds of radio and television programs, government should not be subsidizing one particular group of stations,” McDonnell said. “We must get serious about government spending. That means funding our core functions well, and eliminating spending on programs and services that should be left to the private sector. This is a smart, practical budgeting decision to make Virginia government smaller and more efficient and save taxpayer dollars.”
At that time the cut amounted to 0.00053% of the State's $80 billion budget. The only other cuts proposed in May, 2011, targeted government funding of abortions and planned parenthood.
http://washingtonexaminer.com/local/capital-land/2011/05/mcdonnell-trims-public-broadcasting-funding-line-item-veto/144690
This round of cuts take effect July first.
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