Local radio fund campaigns for $30M in Budget 2026

The Community Radio Fund of Canada (CRFC) wants $30 million allotted per year in the upcoming federal budget to bolster local broadcasters across the country — and it’s enlisting Canadians to help make its pitch. The CRFC has introduced a letter-writing campaign calling on individuals to contact their local MPs, cabinet ministers, and Prime Minister Mark Carney (Nepean, Ont.) to help persuade Ottawa to make a “modest” annual investment in community radio. “Many of our stations operate on less than $150,000 per year,” said Alex Freedman, executive director of the CRFC, in an interview with The Wire Report. “We give billions to the CBC, and there’s no point where I argue against that, but let’s see if there’s a way we can also support community broadcasting.” In particular, Freedman is seeking $24 million for personnel and staffing, $1.5 million for promotion and audience measurement tools, as well as $3.3 million for special project funding, all of which would be annually renewed through a program called the Community Radio Initiative. “This will change everything for community broadcasting,” he said. “Campus, community and Indigenous radio stations play a huge role in local news and information, emergency broadcasting, cultural development, and the promotion of Canadian artists.” “Those stations who are in good standing with the CRTC and meeting their licensing requirements…, they just need a little bit of a leg up.” The CRFC counts 255 stations among its members, which broadcast programming in 55 different languages. As part of the campaign, the CRFC has a pre-written email available to supporters that directly asks Carney for a “modest commitment that would generate lasting cultural, economic, and social benefits for communities across Canada.” “Community radio stations are incubators for Canada's future creative workforce,” reads the message. “They provide aspiring broadcasters, musicians, audio producers, journalists, and arts administrators with hands-on experience that cannot be replicated elsewhere.” The campaign has received nearly 1,000 endorsements since its launch earlier this year. Freedman, a registered lobbyist, has also taken his message directly to Parliament Hill, where he has held recent meetings with Canadian Identity Minister Marc Miller (Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs, Que.), as well as a slate of senators and MPs from both government and opposition benches. “They’re very interested in all aspects of what this looks like,” he said. “They’re listening, but the question is whether we get it over the line for the federal budget.” Earlier this month, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne (Saint-Maurice—Champlain, Que.) started the customary monthslong pre-budget consultation process. Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to The Wire Report’s request for comment. It is not clear when the forthcoming budget will be introduced, though the Carney government has switched to a fiscal cycle that facilitates a fall budget. Last year’s budget was released in early November. In 2025, the CRFC requested $19 million in annual funding through the Community Radio Initiative, which was omitted from the budget and this past spring’s economic update. As previously reported by The Wire Report, Canada’s public radio industry, which includes campus and community stations, has experienced growing profits in recent years, unlike its private counterparts. Last year, the sector, which also includes CBC/Radio-Canada stations, raked in $28.5 million, up nearly $130 million from two decades ago. dlegree@thewirereport.ca

Local radio fund campaigns for $30M in Budget 2026

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By Davis Legree
|July 20, 2026

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Local radio fund campaigns for $30M in Budget 2026

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