On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to take back $1.1 billion in public media funding for PBS and NPR.
The measure, which was narrowly approved and passed along party lines, now heads to the Senate.
The funding at stake includes money for more than 1,500 local public radio and television stations, including KCUR and Classical KC.
"The best defense against whatever happens in D.C. is going to be our own financial independence. I mean, that's the bottom line," KCUR General Manager Sarah Morris told KCUR's Up To Date.
The federal funds, which come from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, had been previously approved by both Republican-led chambers of Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump earlier this year.
"We're going to rely on this community to figure out ways so that we are not having to diminish the service we provide," said Morris. "That's the last thing we want to do, and so we're going to do whatever it takes to get through this, really, really challenging time."
- Sarah Morris, KCUR general manager
- Lisa Rodriguez, KCUR interim director of content and journalism
