Next week, arts advocates from throughout the country will travel to Washington, D.C., for Arts Advocacy Day. They will be arriving at an interesting time in the evolution of national arts policy. The last of year of any presidential administration generates natural and often healthy questions for any advocacy community. Some are retrospective: Did we…
With the primary season officially under way, I think it is fair to say that the nation is officially “hooked” on the presidential election—and understandably so. The results in Iowa reinforced what we’ve all thought would be the case, that the race for the U.S. presidency will be extremely close, and totally unpredictable. While the…
Before we jump into the year ahead—which certainly proposes to be an exciting and important year for arts advocates—let’s take a moment to reflect on 2015 and what a landmark year it was for advancing the arts through policy. For the first time since 2010, Congress appropriated and the president signed legislation increasing funding for…
On November 30, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly (359-64) to approve legislation updating the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The Senate is expected to pass the bill next week. The legislation, known as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), would revise the nation’s most wide-ranging law overseeing public education in the United States…
As we reported last week, President Obama and congressional Republicans agreed on a sweeping budget bill that sets the parameters for the federal budget for the next two years. The deal is significant. With those guidelines in place, the chance of a government shutdown over spending is substantially reduced (though new House Speaker Paul Ryan…
Members of the U.S. House and Senate returned to Washington, D.C., this week for legislative work following the August recess. Greeting legislators upon their return is a gamut of tricky issues that require immediate attention. First and foremost among members of Congress is the fiscal year 2016 budget. After a promising start this year, which…
Despite significant progress made in both chambers to pass a budget for fiscal year 2016, legislation funding the National Endowment for the Arts and most federal agencies appears to be in jeopardy, with less than two months before current appropriations expire. Holding up the appropriations process, which was on track to pass under a regular…
After years of inaction, the U.S. Congress has returned to legislating in recent months. Last November’s sweeping election saw the Republican party increase its majority in the House of Representatives to its largest share since 1948, as well as assume control of the U.S. Senate for the first time since 2006. The logjam has been…
As the month of June begins, several pieces of federal legislation of interest to arts advocates face critical tests. NEA FY2016 Funding Amount Uncertain It has been nearly three months since the House Appropriations Committee held a hearing to consider the fiscal year 2016 budget for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). With the…
April was a busy month in Washington, as Congress worked on several pieces of legislation critical to the arts. First, as we reported last month, the House Appropriations Committee continues to work on funding bills for federal agencies in advance of the fiscal year 2016 budget. As a reminder, NASAA and other arts organizations are…
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