Local Journalism Sustainability Act
2020 proposed American law
The Local Journalism Sustainability Act (H.R. 7640) is a bill introduced into the United States House of Representatives on July 16, 2020, by Representative Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ-2) that would give tax credits to local newspapers. It was introduced in 2020 and again in 2021, but was never voted on in the House. It was supported by the media and newspaper industry.
Provisions
The Local Journalism Sustainability Act would provide tax credits to support local newspapers:
Up to $250 per year per individual to cover 80 percent of subscription fees to local newspapers for the first tax year and 50 percent for subsequent tax years (4-1 match the first year, 1-1 match for an additional four years).
Up to $12,500 per quarter ($50,000 per year) to reduce employment taxes for a local newspaper to hire and pay journalists.
Up to $5,000 per year for a small business to cover 80 percent of advertising with local media (local newspapers or broadcast stations) the first year after this act takes effect and up to $2,500 per year for another four years to cover 50 percent of such advertising.
This act defines a "local newspaper" as any print or digital publication whose (A) primary content is news and current events, and (B) at least 51 percent of its readers (including both print and digital versions) reside in a single (i) State or a single possession of the United States, or (ii) area with a 200-mile radius. To qualify, a "local newspaper" must have been in continuous operation for two years prior to the enactment of this bill.
Legislative History
As of October 28, 2022
Discussion
On July 21, 2020, The Arizona Republic discussed the bill, noting that, “More than 150 news companies and papers have undergone pay cuts, furloughs, layoffs or even shut their doors for good as a result of the pandemic, according to the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank." More recent reports from the Poynter Institute document further reductions in news.
The bill is supported by multiple organizations concerned about the decline of local newspapers and the threat posed to democracy.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Local Journalism Sustainability Act” is 2020 proposed American law. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Local, Journalism and Sustainability, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “2020 proposed American law” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Contemporary correspondence, administrative files and participant testimony can test how later narratives organized the event or institution. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q104856704. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Institutional narratives can privilege the records that survived while minimizing voices that were never formally collected. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Local Journalism Sustainability Act” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.