After several months with little progress, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee met in May and approved the nomination of Dr. Jane Chu to lead the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). During the confirmation process, it was important to NASAA that the principle of 40% of NEA grant funding being mandated for state…
Following a lengthy recess for Easter and Passover, Congress returned to session in May for what is expected to be a busy work period. As I have mentioned in earlier columns, Congress is attempting to pass a budget under regular procedure for the first time since 2009. Last month, the House of Representatives took an…
Last week, arts advocates from around the country came to Washington, D.C., to participate in Arts Advocacy Day. Arts Advocacy Day continues to serve as a great opportunity to meet other arts leaders, share information and meet with members of Congress and their staff. To those who were able to make it this year, I…
As March begins, there are several significant arts policy related developments to report. NEA Chair First and foremost, President Obama announced his intention to nominate Jane Chu to lead the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Chu currently serves as president and chief executive officer of the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas…
In a dramatic departure from recent years of inactivity, 2014 is off to a busy start in Washington. As NASAA reported last month, Congress began its new session by passing the first omnibus appropriations bill since 2009. That bill, which will fund federal agencies for the remainder of fiscal year 2014 (through September 30), provides…
As we reported last month, before adjourning for the holidays, members of the House of Representatives and Senate were able to negotiate a budget resolution that set overall spending limits for fiscal year 2014. While only an early step in the budget process, the announcement was significant as it was the first time since 2010…
The House and Senate returned to work on Monday following a two-week break for the Thanksgiving holiday. Greeting legislators are a number of time-sensitive issues that must be addressed before year’s end. First, the legislation that ended the government shutdown in August mandates that the committee of House and Senate members charged with negotiating a…
On October 16, the federal government shutdown came to a close when leadership in the House of Representatives and the Senate were able to reach an agreement with President Obama. The deal provides funding for the federal government until January 15, while also providing some certainty to the financial markets by extending the nation’s borrowing…
This week, the U.S. House and Senate returned to session after an unusually long summer recess. Greeting members upon their return are several pressing fiscal issues. First, the current fiscal year is set to expire on September 30, and despite action taken in both the House and Senate appropriations committees, neither chamber has made significant…
August 5 marked the beginning of a five-week break for members of Congress. The annual recess comes at a particularly challenging time, as Congress adjourned last week without reaching an agreement on several significant spending bills that will require action this fall. Among the bills Congress has failed to pass to date is a federal…
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