policy and advocacy
Legislative Update
- Follow the links below for the latest updates on federal action pertaining to the arts. You may write your members of Congress on any of these issues by visiting our E-Advocacy Center.
- Federal Arts Funding
- Federal Arts Education Funding
- Federal Tax Policy
- Cultural Exchange
- Public Broadcasting/IMLS
Senate Floor Information (see right side of the page for today's schedule)
2008 Congressional Schedule (dates subject to change)
Congressional Arts Caucus Roster
Federal Arts Funding
Last year, President Bush signed into law the “omnibus” Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2007 which included $144.7 million for the National Endowment for the Arts—$20 million more than the previous year’s appropriation and representing the largest increase in 28 years! This 16 percent increase was a result of a compromise between the House and Senate provisions which were $36 million and $ 9 million, respectively, over the previous year’s budget. The National Endowment for the Humanities also saw an incremental increase in its funding, receiving $144.7 million for FY 2008 over the FY 2007.
On the heels of signing this increase, President Bush proposed a senseless $16.3 million cut for the NEA in his budget request for FY 2009—from $144.7 million to $128.4 million. The president also asked for a slight cut to the NEH, from $144.7 to $144.3 million. In response to this dramatic cut, the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, led by Chairman Norm Dicks (D-WA), has proposed a $15 million increase for the NEA, which would bring the budget to $160 million. Additionally, the National Endowment for the Humanities was also given an increase to match the NEA at $160 million. The Senate is expected to take up Interior Appropriations in the coming weeks as the House struggles to get full Appropriations Committee passage due to contentious oil-drilling proposals that have stalled consideration.
Federal Arts Education Funding
Funding for the U.S. Department of Education and the Arts in Education Program (AIE) received a $37.5 million appropriation for FY 2008, which represents only a modest increase for programmatic funding over FY 2007. However, that appropriation included $2.2 million for the Arts Fast Response Survey (FRSS). With its inclusion, the FRSS will be fielded for the first time in 7 years and will provide invaluable data as to the effectiveness of arts education in school curricula. AIE survived an initial veto by President Bush of the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriation Bill, the legislation that funds education that was later included in the omnibus.
This year for the eighth consecutive year, the president’s budget has eliminated funding for the AIE for FY 2009. The U.S. House and U.S. Senate have not yet release any proposed appropriations levels for FY 2009 despite passage out of the respective subcommittees.
Federal Tax Policy
In November 2007, NEA Chairman Dana Gioia released a letter and NEA summary report on the Artist-Museum Partnership Act (S. 548 and H.R. 1524) sent to Senators Leahy (D-VT) and Bennett (R-UT) discussing the positive impact of the bill in preserving America's artistic heritage. To date, 103 sponsors have added their names to the House bill, a number tying the most ever for the bill. Please take a moment to read the NEA Chairman’s letter here.
On December 31, 2007, the IRA Charitable Rollover expired along with other tax extensions that failed to be considered before the end of the year. This legislation, which permits tax-free charitable contributions from an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) of up to $100,000 per year for taxpayers 70.5 years old and older, was to be included as part of a tax extension package attached to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) bill. In a procedural move, the U.S. Senate stripped out the extenders and passed a bill that was later approved by the House and signed by the President. On May 14, 2008, the House Ways and Means Committee reported out a new package of tax extenders that includes the IRA Charitable Rollover provision setting it and other tax provision's expiration date for 2009. The measure was expected to pass in both chambers of Congress as it does not contain other controversial tax provisions such as the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), but recent attempts to bring the bill up in the U.S. Senate have failed by procedural vote because of controversial cost offsets.
Reps. Tom Udall (D-NM) and Phil English (R-PA) have introduced H.R. 3881, The Promotion of Artistic Giving Act of 2007, to amend the overly restrictive changes made to the tax treatment of fractional gifts in the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Fractional gifts are charitable donations to museums and galleries made in fractions over a number of years.
Cultural Exchange
Included in the omnibus budget bill was an increase for the State Department's Cultural Programs Division as part of the FY 2008 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. Though no budget details have been made available, the estimated funding level is $11 million. No proposed figures are available for FY09.
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Artist Visa Immigration Update
H.R. 1312, The Arts Require Timely Service Act (ARTS), a bill requiring the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to expedite nonprofit arts-related organizations visa petitions, passed out of the House Judiciary Committee in December 2007. This legislation seeks to rectify the unpredictability of the visa process for international artists and performance organizations that depend on time-sensitive scheduling without having to pay a premium for timely consideration of their petitions. The bill has not yet been scheduled for debate on the House floor.
The House of Representatives passed the ARTS bill on April 1, 2008 under suspension of the rules by voice vote. Senate consideration has not been scheduled.
Corporation for Public Broadcasting/OMS (within IMLS)
In the FY08 omnibus bill, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) saw an increase for its FY10 budget in the amount of $20 million, bringing the total appropriation to $420 million. The FY 2009 budget request calls for a rescission of $200 million in this already-approved funding for the CPB. Unfortunately, the Office of Museum Services (OMS) did not fare as well in the final budget reconciliation. OMS saw a small decrease from FY 2007 from $32.2 million to a FY 2008 total of $31.9 million. However, in his FY 2009 budget request, President Bush requested a funding boost of over $8 million for OMS, bringing the amount of funding available for grants to almost $40 million. The U.S. House and U.S. Senate have not yet release any proposed appropriations levels for FY09 despite passage out of the respective subcommittees.
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