SacTown Radio: CapRadio Plagued By Financial Issues

CapRadio this week announced it laid off 12% of its staff and canceled four music shows because of ongoing financial issues. 

Management on Wednesday laid off nine employees based in Sacramento and three employees in Chico who worked at North State Public Radio, which CapRadio operates. 

CapRadio gave three additional workers a final employment date, Interim General Manager Tom Karlo said Friday. Before the layoffs, the NPR member station had 102 positions, according to a posting on their website.

The canceled Saturday music shows are “Mick Martin’s Blues Party,” “Hey, Listen!,” “K-ZAP on CapRadio” and “At the Opera,” the station announced Friday. Three of them aired on CapRadio’s news station, while one ran on the music station. Karlo called the show eliminations unfortunate, but said ending the mixed format of news and music on the same channel could help the station financially. 

In addition to music hosts, the layoffs also included news hosts and staff working in digital, Karlo said. The station plans to pre-record hosts ahead of time and automate voicing with playlists, he added. National programming is scheduled to replace the canceled music shows. 

CapRadio announced the layoffs the same day the board approved the budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year, two months after the year began. Of the $21 million in expected revenue, at least $5 million are one-time funds, according to information Board Treasurer Bena Arao presented during the public meeting Wednesday. Operating expenses are projected at $19.2 million, an increase of 8% compared to the prior year.

To prepare for a revenue drop next fiscal year, Arao said the finance committee recommended layoffs and holding an unspecified number of positions vacant. The cuts will reduce employee costs by $1.3 million for CapRadio and $183,000 for NSPR compared to the previous year, according to the presentation.