Call to Action: $300K Arts Grants Increase- Over 1/3 of NC House in Arts Caucus
A budget bill has been approved by both the NC Senate and NC House of Representatives that includes a $300,000 increase in non-recurring funding for the NC Arts Council Grassroots Arts Program Grants. This is the first step we wanted to begin our journey towards the goals of the $1 for the ARTS Campaign. This funding will be distributed across all 100 counties and positions us not only to make these funds recurring in the future, but to make more significant funding gains for both NC Arts Council Grassroots and General Grants in the 2019 Legislative Session when the NC General Assembly will be crafting another Biennium Budget. It is time we tell our legislators we are grateful for this additional funding.
Also, thanks to the amazing work of advocates at ARTS Day and others, the NC House Caucus for Arts and Arts Education has 44 members, more than one third of the NC House of Representatives. This caucus will enable us to educate legislators about the economic, educational, and civic impact of the arts, strengthening our support as we work to achieve our goals. We are hopeful that a similar caucus in the NC Senate will be announced soon.
Time for action:
– Contact your Senator and your House Representative and say you are GRATEFUL for the funding increase for NC Arts Council Grants. Call, write, or email, just be sure to say thank you.
– If your Representative is listed as member of the NC House Caucus for Arts and Arts Education, then contact them and say THANK YOU.
– If your Representative is NOT listed as member of the NC House Caucus for Arts and Arts Education, then ask them to become a member by contacting one of the Co-Chairs.
The budget bill (S99) will now head to the Governor, who will have 10 days to sign it, veto it, or allow it to become law without his signature. However, a veto would be quickly overridden by the Republican majority in the NC General Assembly. This budget process has been controversial because it was created in such a way that did not allow for amendments to be offered and much of the work was done in private meetings prior to the session starting on May 16th. This meant that the year-round advocacy efforts of Arts NC staff and lobbyists, as well as citizens across the state, played a crucial role in making sure we were part of those conversations. When hundreds of advocates came to ARTS Day last week while the budget was being finalized, we placed a large and important exclamation mark on our message.
This is what is possible when we come together to work for a common goal. There is value in a simple, positive, and inclusive message delivered by a thoughtful and well informed constituency. We have seen that advocacy works when we make the commitment to do the work of advocacy. When we can envision the future of our creative state, we can achieve it together. Thank you all for your hard work and advocacy.