Struggling regional and rural newspapers will be able to access much needed funds to absorb rising print costs, the federal government has confirmed.
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From Monday, print publishers will be able to access the Commonwealth's $15 million Regional and Local Newspaper Publishers Program, in a bid to keep local reporting alive across the regions.
The money, broken up into a $10 million regional newspaper fund and a $5 million fund for independent suburban and multicultural publishers, is part of a bipartisan promise from the recent election.
Rising print costs put a number of print publications in jeopardy, which would have been forced to closed if there was no intervention.
Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland said the federal government has moved as quickly as possible to ensure funding is swift.
"The Albanese government is committed to supporting the regional and local print newspaper industry to avoid a catastrophic loss of local papers as a result of significant price increases in newsprint that kicked in on July 1 this year," she said.
"That's why we moved quickly to finalise the grant guidelines and open applications, so that funding can flow to where it's needed most as soon as possible."
Applications will be open for three weeks.
The $15 million is part of a broader $29 million package which will also assist regional and rural television and regional broadcasters.