HB2047: Establishing the Local News Fellowship Program; imposing duties on the State System of Higher…

2874 PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 2622 PRINTER'S NO. THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA HOUSE BILL 2047 Session of No. 2025 INTRODUCED BY RABB, SANCHEZ, WAXMAN, KHAN, RIVERA, FREEMAN, K.HARRIS, SMITH-WADE-EL AND WARREN, NOVEMBER 18, 2025 AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, FEBRUARY 4, 2026 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 SUBJECT TO THE AVAILABILITY OF MONEY APPROPRIATED <-- 24 FOR THIS PURPOSE. Within 90 days of the effective date of this 25 subsection, the Governor shall designate the administering 26 institution and transmit notice of the designation to the 27 Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the next 28 available issue of the Pennsylvania Bulletin. 29 (b) Program components.--The TO THE EXTENT MONEY IS <-- 30 AVAILABLE, THE program shall include the following core 20250HB2047PN2874 - 2 -

1 components: 2 (1) The administering institution shall assign fellows 3 to host newsrooms in accordance with the selection process 4 under section 4. 5 (2) Fellows shall receive fair compensation, mentorship 6 and access to training opportunities to enhance their 7 journalistic skills and community engagement. 8 (3) Priority shall be given to placements that serve 9 communities with significant civic information needs, 10 including rural areas, communities of color and immigrant 11 populations. 12 (4) The program shall encourage fellows to build lasting 13 ties to the host newsroom and the community served. 14 Section 4. Selection and placement of fellows. 15 (a) Selection of fellows.--The administering institution 16 shall establish a competitive selection process for fellows, 17 which may include criteria such as academic or professional 18 background, demonstrated commitment to public-interest 19 journalism and alignment with the goals of the program. 20 (b) Approval of host newsrooms.--The administering 21 institution shall develop and post criteria for the designation 22 of host newsrooms on the administering institution's publicly 23 accessible Internet website. The criteria shall include all of 24 the following: 25 (1) The newsroom's capacity to provide editorial 26 oversight, mentorship and professional development. 27 (2) The newsroom's alignment with the goals of the 28 program. 29 (3) The demonstrated civic information needs of the 30 community served. 20250HB2047PN2874 - 3 -

1 (c) Placement guidelines.--In making fellowship placements, 2 the administering institution shall seek geographic and 3 demographic diversity and shall prioritize underserved 4 communities with limited access to original local news and civic 5 information needs. 6 Section 5. Administration of program. 7 (a) Administration.--The administering institution shall 8 administer the program ONLY TO THE EXTENT MONEY IS AVAILABLE and <-- 9 may partner or contract with a nonprofit organization that has 10 experience in journalism education, civic media or public- 11 interest reporting to implement all or part of the program. 12 (b) Duties.--The administering institution or a nonprofit 13 organization engaged under subsection (a) shall have the 14 following duties: 15 (1) Manage outreach and application processes for 16 fellows and host newsrooms. 17 (2) Coordinate fellow placement and provide or 18 facilitate training, mentorship and cohort-building 19 activities. 20 (3) Monitor the performance of fellows and host 21 newsrooms throughout the duration of the fellowship. 22 (c) Reporting requirements.-- 23 (1) The administering institution shall prepare an 24 annual report evaluating the implementation and outcomes of 25 the program. The report shall include all of the following 26 information: 27 (i) The number of fellows placed and the names and 28 locations of approved host newsrooms. 29 (ii) A summary of training, mentorship and community 30 engagement activities. 20250HB2047PN2874 - 4 -

1 (iii) An assessment of the program's impact on 2 access to civic information needs in participating 3 communities. 4 (iv) Fellow retention and post-fellowship employment 5 outcomes in this Commonwealth. 6 (v) Demographic representation of the applicant 7 pool, selected fellows and host newsrooms, reported in 8 aggregate form. 9 (vi) A description of methods used to measure the 10 program's impact on civic information needs and the 11 results of those measures. 12 (vii) A summary of public feedback received under 13 paragraph (3) and the administering institution's 14 response, including any program changes adopted. 15 (viii) Any recommendations for improvement or 16 expansion of the program. 17 (2) The administering institution shall submit the 18 annual report to the Governor and the General Assembly and 19 post the report on its publicly accessible Internet website. 20 (3) The administering institution shall maintain a 21 publicly accessible mechanism to receive comments from 22 fellows, host newsrooms and members of the public regarding 23 the program and shall solicit comments not less than annually 24 for inclusion in the report under paragraph (1). 25 Section 6. Editorial independence. 26 (a) Noninterference.--Each fellow and host newsroom shall 27 retain sole editorial control over content, assignments and 28 publication decisions. Neither the administering institution, 29 the Commonwealth nor any officer or employee thereof may direct, 30 control or otherwise influence the editorial decision making of 20250HB2047PN2874 - 5 -

1 fellows or host newsrooms. 2 (b) Viewpoint neutrality.--Program funds or participation 3 may not be conditioned on the viewpoint, content or subject of 4 reporting. 5 (c) Administrative decisions.--Nothing in this section shall 6 be construed to limit administrative decisions on eligibility, 7 placement or funding that are made under neutral program 8 criteria. 9 SECTION 7. ADMINISTRATION. <-- 10 THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY MAY APPROPRIATE FUNDING AS IT DEEMS 11 NECESSARY TO EFFECTUATE THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT. 12 Section 7 8. Effective date. <-- 13 This act shall take effect in 60 days. 20250HB2047PN2874 - 6 -