Tired of the run away spending in Washington? Concerned we are spending ourselves off a cliff?  Me too, that’s why I feature this regular installment on YouCut,  an interactive way for YOU the taxpayer to get involved in the budget process.  YouCut allows you, the citizen, to cast an online vote to let your voice be heard by stopping the runaway spending in Washington.

In a letter from Eric Cantor, House Republican Whip:

NPR firing Juan Williams for expressing his opinion demonstrates an over-reaching political correctness that is chipping away at the fundamental American freedoms of speech and expression. That is why we have included the termination of federal funding for NPR in the latest round of YouCut options.

We're asking you to weigh in: do you believe that your tax dollars should be going to fund NPR? 

Click here to vote on this week's cuts.

See below for more information about NPR's public funding:

Terminate Taxpayer Funding of National Public Radio

Savings of Tens of Millions of Dollars (potentially in excess of a hundred million dollars)

National Public Radio's (NPR) recent decision to terminate commentator Juan Williams contract because of comments he expressed on another station have brought new found attention to NPR's receipt of taxpayer funds.

NPR receives taxpayer funding in two different ways. First, they receive direct government grants from various federal agencies, including the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Education, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Over the past two years this direct funding has totaled approximately $9 million. But NPR also receives taxpayer funds indirectly. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting makes grants to public radio stations. While some of these grants can be used for any purpose, some can only be used to acquire and produce programming. Often this programming is purchased from NPR. Indeed programming fees and dues paid by local public radio stations to NPR accounts for approximately 40% of NPR's budget or about $65 million last year. A portion of these funds were originally federal tax dollars provided to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to the local public radio stations.

Flow of Federal Tax Dollars to National Public Radio:



NPR receives a significant amount of funding from private individuals and organizations through donations and sponsorships. For example in 2008, NPR listed over 32 separate private donors and sponsors who provided financial support in excess of half-a-million dollars that year. NPR officials have indicated that taxpayer funding makes up only a small portion of their overall budget. Therefore eliminating taxpayer support should not materially affect NPR’s ability to operate while at the same time saving taxpayers millions of dollars annually.

Your other choices to cut spending this week are:

Terminate Exchanges with Historic Whaling and Trading Partners Program
Savings of $87.5 million over ten years

Terminate the Presidential Election Fund
Savings of $520 million over ten years.