WASHINGTON — The board of the CPB has voted to disband the organization, following the reduction of federal funding that was crucial for its operations. This decision was anticipated after an earlier announcement in August indicated the CPB’s impending shutdown due to the lack of restored funds. Last year, Republican legislators voted to retract about $1.1 billion in federal funding initially allocated to the CPB for the upcoming two fiscal years.

CPB has played a pivotal role in supporting PBS, NPR, and approximately 1,500 local radio and TV stations. It has also been instrumental in funding popular programs like “Sesame Street” and “Finding Your Roots.” The organization employed around 100 staff members, most of whom were notified that their jobs would be terminated with the fiscal year ending on September 30. A small transition team has been retained to oversee the closure process.

“With the withdrawal of federal funding by the Administration and Congress, our Board was faced with a significant decision,” said CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison in a statement issued on Monday. “In order to uphold the integrity of the public media system and its democratic principles, our final act will be to dissolve the organization, rather than leave it vulnerable and without financial support.”

“When the Administration and Congress rescinded federal funding, our Board faced a profound responsibility,” CPB president and CEO Patricia Harrison said in a statement Monday. “CPB’s final act would be to protect the integrity of the public media system and the democratic values by dissolving, rather than allowing the organization to remain defunded and vulnerable to additional attacks.”

The corporation was created by Congress in 1967 to distribute federal funds to public media outlets, including local television and radio stations and, over the years, NPR and PBS. CPB has said roughly 70% of its funding historically went directly to local stations, many of them in rural or underserved communities. It’s likely some won’t survive the shutdown. NPR’s president estimated that as many as 80 NPR stations may close in the next year.

Ruby Calvert, chair of the CPB board of directors, called the closure “devastating,” but said she believes public media will ultimately endure. 

“Even in this moment, I am convinced that public media will survive, and that a new Congress will address public media’s role in our country because it is critical to our children’s education, our history, culture and democracy to do so,” she said. 

As part of the shutdown, CPB will distribute its remaining funds and continue supporting the American Archive of Public Broadcasting. The organization’s own archives will be preserved through a partnership with the University of Maryland, where they will remain accessible to the public.