Letschert's broadcasting bill passes Senate, with €31m in national funding
The Eerste Kamer has passed a bill that merges local stations and will pay them a total of €31m directly from central government from 1 January 2028.
The Eerste Kamer, the Senate, has passed minister Rianne Letschert's bill to strengthen and professionalise local stations. The number of local broadcasters will fall from more than 200 to no more than 80,, so that more of them serve several municipalities.
Why it matters
- Local broadcasters will get a fixed budget for 5 years, paid by central government rather than through municipalities.
- Municipalities can still add money on top of the national contribution.
- The new system will take effect on 1 January 2028.
Funding now comes from the gemeentefonds, the municipal fund, and is about €13m. The national government will add a structural €18m. The total of €31m will be paid directly to the broadcasters.
The regional division is the result of cooperation between the sector foundation NLPO and the VNG, the association of municipalities. The NLPO will get a statutory task as the sector's cooperation and coordination body.
Local broadcasters are indispensable for our democracy.Rianne Letschert, minister of education, culture and science
Letschert said the law allows them to keep playing their crucial role. The ministry says local news such as council coverage, community reports and match reports will stay available to everyone.
What happens next
- Mid-November 2026: the Commissariaat voor de Media will start the appointment procedure for the future 80 local stations.
- 1 January 2028: the new system will take effect.
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lokale omroepen
Local public broadcasters are non-profit media organisations that make radio, television and online news and programmes for a town, region or group of municipalities in the Netherlands. They are publicly funded and must provide local news, information and community content for their area. Their size and number are set by Dutch media law, so changes to how they are organised affect the whole local media landscape.
Gemeentefonds
The Gemeentefonds is the municipal fund, the pot of money from which the Dutch national government pays its municipalities. Most of this money is not tied to a specific purpose, so municipalities can spend it as they see fit, and each municipality's share is calculated with a formula based on factors such as population and tasks. Here it is used as a funding source for local public broadcasters.
NLPO (Nederlandse Lokale Publieke Omroepen)
The NLPO is the Dutch foundation that represents and coordinates the country's local public broadcasters, working together with the VNG, the association of Dutch municipalities. It supports cooperation within the sector, for example on shared content, technology and joint arrangements. Under the new law it is to get a statutory role as the sector's official cooperation and coordination body.