TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A petition opposing proposed cuts and freezes to the Public Television Service budget surpassed 150,000 signatures on Thursday, as lawmakers consider radically reducing the broadcaster's budget.
The petition was launched by 53 PTS producers after they learned the network could face significant budget cuts and freezes, per UP Media. The petition argued that the proposed reductions exceed the scope of legislative oversight and warned that they could cause irreversible damage to the institution.
A PTS insider said the cuts and freezes proposed by opposition lawmakers would reduce the broadcaster's budget by about NT$1 billion, per Liberty Times.
Award-winning actress Ko Chia-yen (柯佳嬿) and more than a dozen other celebrities expressed support for the petition, per China Times. The Dragonfly Association of Taiwan, along with 17 other environmental groups, also issued a joint statement defending PTS' long-term coverage of Taiwan's environmental issues, including overdevelopment and biodiversity loss, per CNA.
During legislative caucus negotiations on Thursday, lawmakers proposed multiple reductions to PTS' 2026 budget. KMT Legislator Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇) proposed cutting NT$10 million, while KMT Legislator Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲) proposed freezing NT$218.5 million, per Liberty Times. TPP Legislator Tsai Chun-chou (蔡春綢) proposed freezing NT$100 million, and KMT Legislator Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) proposed cutting NT$50 million and freezing 30% of PTS' budget, totaling about NT$636 million.
Culture Minister Li Yuan (李遠) said the only change made during committee review was an NT$11 million freeze and urged lawmakers not to make further cuts. The KMT and TPP legislative caucuses failed to reach a consensus during Thursday's negotiations.
Li also objected to the proposed reductions to TaiwanPlus, whose budget was reviewed separately from PTS, even though they are part of the same organization. He said the proposals went far beyond the NT$10 million cut and NT$10 million freeze approved during committee review.
A PTS insider said TaiwanPlus faced cuts and freezes of NT$1.49 billion. The PTS board warned on July 29 that this would nearly eliminate the TaiwanPlus budget, per Storm Media. It acknowledged, however, that the institution has shortcomings and said it welcomes external criticism.
The PTS board added that severe budget reductions would hurt workers in the entertainment industry, production companies and viewers. It also questioned the opposition's attempt to link PTS budget freezes with the nomination of board members, saying it has no authority to nominate or review candidates.
The board urged lawmakers to resolve political disputes through political channels rather than harming PTS, which it described as a public good.
