KOCT board members, saying times are tough for the community television station, made another plea to the Oceanside City Council for financial assistance, but the council said the budget is tight with nothing to spare.
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“We don’t have the funds,” said Mayor Esther Sanchez on Wednesday before the council unanimously approved its fiscal 2026-27 budget of $743.7 million for general operations and capital improvements.
Last year, the council approved a one-time payment of $175,000 for KOCT, saying it could not afford to continue helping the station with money from the city’s general fund. The station’s operators had requested up to $250,000.
KOCT’s primary financial support is what’s called “public, education and governmental” or PEG funding from a fee charged to cable subscribers. However, that revenue is declining as more viewers cut the cord and rely on streaming services. The station’s PEG funding went from $468,093 in fiscal 2018 to $269,000 in FY 2024, according to the city.
The station’s viewers and board members asked the council to find a way to help.
“We face headwinds of increased costs, equipment failure and cable-cutting, and we need your support,” said board Chair Kent Davy, the retired editor of The North County Times newspaper.
The station’s staff has increased its revenue from other sources, kept its payroll under budget and delivered on all its contract items with the city, he said. The station airs Oceanside’s City Council and various commission meetings, and reports on local events.
“We can’t really do much more than this,” Davy said. “We are going to face a fiscal crisis.”
Marco Werman, a National Public Radio reporter and program host for 40 years, said the station is a “top-notch, world-class facility, extremely well-managed” and, like many public radio stations, it has lost grant funding and staff members under federal budget cuts.
“As citizens, we need to know what goes on in our backyard,” Werman said. “Outlets like KOCT should not feel under threat or endangered. They have to be supported.”
KOCT is a resource that “cannot be replicated or outsourced,” said Amy Forsythe, an Oceanside resident and retired Navy public affairs officer assigned to Camp Pendleton in the mid-1990s.
The station has been “the top training pipeline” for broadcast careers in North County, Forsythe said. People who started at KOCT have gone on to work at TV stations in San Diego and the top 20 media markets across the country.
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“Once institutions like this disappear, they are incredibly difficult, if not impossible to replace,” Forsythe said.
Councilmember Eric Joyce said he would like to support the station, and that perhaps the council could find a way to do that at a future meeting.
“In my opinion, it’s essential that we stand up for publicly funded journalism in our community,” Joyce said.
Councilmember Rick Robinson said tax revenue expected from some of the cannabis business opening in the city might be a source of money for the station in the future.
The City Council got its first look at the 2026-27 budget in April, when it gave preliminary approval to the spending plan while advising caution.
City Manager Jonathan Borrego said at the time that Oceanside is entering a period “of economic uncertainty” and “a lot of things going on nationally could have an impact locally.”
Oceanside and most other cities expect cuts in federal and state funding for things such as the community development block grants that help pay for social service programs every year.
Despite the worrisome outlook, the city’s budget is balanced and includes money to hire three additional police officers, two more firefighters and some part-time assistants in the the library and parks and recreation departments.
Staff members gave credit to forward-thinking residents and elected officials for keeping the budget in the black, while other cities such as San Diego are looking at deficits and layoffs.
One reason for Oceanside’s good fortune is Measure X, a temporary half-cent sales tax that provides millions of dollars annually for public safety, homeless assistance and other high-priority services. In November 2024, Oceanside voters approved a 10-year extension of the original seven-year tax increase.
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