HB 2047 — An Act establishing the Local News Fellowship Program; imposing duties on an administering institution; and providing for administration of the Local News Fellowship Program.

PRINTER'S NO.     2622

                   THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                       HOUSE BILL
                       No. 2047
                                               Session of
                                                 2025

     INTRODUCED BY RABB, SANCHEZ, WAXMAN, KHAN, RIVERA, FREEMAN AND
        K.HARRIS, NOVEMBER 18, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY,
        NOVEMBER 18, 2025


                                     AN ACT
 1   Establishing the Local News Fellowship Program; imposing duties
 2      on an administering institution; and providing for
 3      administration of the Local News Fellowship Program.
 4      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 5   hereby enacts as follows:
 6   Section 1.   Short title.
 7      This act shall be known and may be cited as the Local News
 8   Fellowship Program Act.
 9   Section 2.   Definitions.
10      The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
11   have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
12   context clearly indicates otherwise:
13      "Administering institution."    An institution designated by
14   the Governor within the State System of Higher Education that is
15   reasonably qualified to administer the program or the State
16   Library of Pennsylvania.
17      "Civic information needs."    The information resources,
18   including local journalism and communication infrastructure,
 1   needed by a community for civic engagement and participation.
 2      "Community-based newsroom."     A nonprofit or independent media
 3   organization that meets all of the following criteria:
 4            (1)   Maintains its principal place of business within
 5      this Commonwealth.
 6            (2)   Primarily serves a local or regional audience.
 7            (3)   Produces original reporting that advances civic
 8      engagement, public accountability or community-informed
 9      journalism.
10      "Fellow."     An early-career journalist who is selected to
11   participate in the program under section 4(a).
12      "Host newsroom."     A community-based newsroom that applies for
13   and receives approval from the administering institution to host
14   a fellow under the program.
15      "Program."     The Local News Fellowship Program established
16   under section 3(a).
17   Section 3.     Establishment of program.
18      (a)   Establishment.--The Local News Fellowship Program is
19   established within the administering institution to expand
20   access to high-quality local journalism, support the development
21   of early-career and mid-career journalists and strengthen the
22   capacity of community-based newsrooms throughout this
23   Commonwealth. Within 90 days of the effective date of this
24   subsection, the Governor shall designate the administering
25   institution and transmit notice of the designation to the
26   Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the next
27   available issue of the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
28      (b)   Program components.--The program shall include the
29   following core components:
30            (1)   The administering institution shall assign fellows

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 1      to host newsrooms in accordance with the selection process
 2      under section 4.
 3            (2)   Fellows shall receive fair compensation, mentorship
 4      and access to training opportunities to enhance their
 5      journalistic skills and community engagement.
 6            (3)   Priority shall be given to placements that serve
 7      communities with significant civic information needs,
 8      including rural areas, communities of color and immigrant
 9      populations.
10            (4)   The program shall encourage fellows to build lasting
11      ties to the host newsroom and the community served.
12   Section 4.     Selection and placement of fellows.
13      (a)   Selection of fellows.--The administering institution
14   shall establish a competitive selection process for fellows,
15   which may include criteria such as academic or professional
16   background, demonstrated commitment to public-interest
17   journalism and alignment with the goals of the program.
18      (b)   Approval of host newsrooms.--The administering
19   institution shall develop and post criteria for the designation
20   of host newsrooms on the administering institution's publicly
21   accessible Internet website. The criteria shall include all of
22   the following:
23            (1)   The newsroom's capacity to provide editorial
24      oversight, mentorship and professional development.
25            (2)   The newsroom's alignment with the goals of the
26      program.
27            (3)   The demonstrated civic information needs of the
28      community served.
29      (c)   Placement guidelines.--In making fellowship placements,
30   the administering institution shall seek geographic and

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 1   demographic diversity and shall prioritize underserved
 2   communities with limited access to original local news and civic
 3   information needs.
 4   Section 5.     Administration of program.
 5      (a)   Administration.--The administering institution shall
 6   administer the program and may partner or contract with a
 7   nonprofit organization that has experience in journalism
 8   education, civic media or public-interest reporting to implement
 9   all or part of the program.
10      (b)   Duties.--The administering institution or a nonprofit
11   organization engaged under subsection (a) shall have the
12   following duties:
13            (1)   Manage outreach and application processes for
14      fellows and host newsrooms.
15            (2)   Coordinate fellow placement and provide or
16      facilitate training, mentorship and cohort-building
17      activities.
18            (3)   Monitor the performance of fellows and host
19      newsrooms throughout the duration of the fellowship.
20      (c)   Reporting requirements.--
21            (1)   The administering institution shall prepare an
22      annual report evaluating the implementation and outcomes of
23      the program. The report shall include all of the following
24      information:
25                  (i)    The number of fellows placed and the names and
26            locations of approved host newsrooms.
27                  (ii)    A summary of training, mentorship and community
28            engagement activities.
29                  (iii)   An assessment of the program's impact on
30            access to civic information needs in participating

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 1            communities.
 2                  (iv)    Fellow retention and post-fellowship employment
 3            outcomes in this Commonwealth.
 4                  (v)    Demographic representation of the applicant
 5            pool, selected fellows and host newsrooms, reported in
 6            aggregate form.
 7                  (vi)    A description of methods used to measure the
 8            program's impact on civic information needs and the
 9            results of those measures.
10                  (vii)    A summary of public feedback received under
11            paragraph (3) and the administering institution's
12            response, including any program changes adopted.
13                  (viii)    Any recommendations for improvement or
14            expansion of the program.
15            (2)   The administering institution shall submit the
16      annual report to the Governor and the General Assembly and
17      post the report on its publicly accessible Internet website.
18            (3)   The administering institution shall maintain a
19      publicly accessible mechanism to receive comments from
20      fellows, host newsrooms and members of the public regarding
21      the program and shall solicit comments not less than annually
22      for inclusion in the report under paragraph (1).
23   Section 6.     Editorial independence.
24      (a)   Noninterference.--Each fellow and host newsroom shall
25   retain sole editorial control over content, assignments and
26   publication decisions. Neither the administering institution,
27   the Commonwealth nor any officer or employee thereof may direct,
28   control or otherwise influence the editorial decision making of
29   fellows or host newsrooms.
30      (b)   Viewpoint neutrality.--Program funds or participation

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1   may not be conditioned on the viewpoint, content or subject of
2   reporting.
3      (c)   Administrative decisions.--Nothing in this section shall
4   be construed to limit administrative decisions on eligibility,
5   placement or funding that are made under neutral program
6   criteria.
7   Section 7.   Effective date.
8      This act shall take effect in 60 days.




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