Reps Cicilline, Sensenbrenner Introduce Bill to Protect Local News Publishers

House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline (D-RI) and Ranking Member F. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) introduced the Local News and Emergency Information Act. The legislation would ensure that all local news organizations are eligible for federal stimulus through the Paycheck Protection Program. The bill ensures that small, local broadcasters and publishers are able to access vitally needed loans under the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program. Importantly, the bill requires that these funds can only be used only by local news publishers for payroll purposes to produce news locally. Parent companies would be prevented from accessing any funding granted to a local news organization.