First, we want to thank everyone who took the time to sign the letter to the California Arts Council (CAC) urging them to reconsider proposed changes to field-serving programs. You can read more about the issues we took collective action on and the signed letter at our #FundCAarts webpage.

 As we begin our review of the Governor’s 2023-24 Budget proposal and identifying Senate budget priorities, I write now to alert your office to the process we will follow for members to provide input on statewide budget priorities, and district specific budget requests.  For this upcoming 2023-24 fiscal year, new General Fund resources are anticipated to be limited. 

Last year the Assembly established two formal processes to accept input from member offices. Your input informs the Subcommittee hearing process and shapes the Assembly’s budget priorities. We have two different processes, one for overall budget priorities and issues and a smaller and more dedicated process for member district priorities. 

Dear CA Arts & Culture Advocates,

Welcome back, it’s budget season again in California but things look a little different this year. Between spiraling inflation, a weakening stock market and a budget that relies heavily on capital gains, this year’s budget proposal announced by Governor Newsom on January 10, 2023 is a $298 billion spending plan which takes into account a projected $22.5 billion deficit and is about 3.6% smaller than last year’s record budget. 

 What does this mean for the arts?

We are delighted the CA Budget package includes new investments in arts and culture for vital programs such as lifting up community cultural districts and arts installations in parks. We also celebrate the $120 million investment in thirty one district across the state.

On Friday, May 13, 2022, Governor Newsom released the May revise. Due to an increase in General Fund revenues estimated to be nearly $55 billion higher than January, the budget includes new proposals including $18.1 billion in direct relief to millions of Californians to help offset rising costs. The Legislature will review the Governor's proposals and then present their own recommendations. A budget must be sent to the Governor by June 15 at which time he has 12 working days to reduce or eliminate any appropriation contained in the budget and sign the bill.

California Arts Advocates supports the following budget items that were proposed by Governor Newsom in his January 2022 Budget.

The California Arts Council requests $30 million one-time General Fund, to be spent over three years, to support the existing 14 cultural districts and to expand the cultural districts program to serve traditionally underserved communities, represent a cohort that reflects the geographic and racial diversity of the state, and enable the California Arts Council sufficient capacity to provide technical assistance.

California Budget and Advocacy Guide & Timeline. View and download here

“While we support the Governor’s January budget proposals for arts initiatives, we urge the Legislature to consider our suggestions,'' states Julie Baker, Executive Director of CAA. “The CA Creative Workforce Act is historic, the first creative workforce bill passed by any state in the country, but needs state investment if it is to truly benefit arts workers. For California to truly prioritize and commit to diversifying the creative workforce pipeline with living wages, SB 628ll needs to be funded. In addition, one-time projects are exciting and helpful for the field, but what we know from our expertise in the field is that ongoing general support funds are critical for arts organizations and arts workers to sustain and continue to work in California.”

Dear Governor Newsom,

It was a pleasure to see you at the California Economic Summit in Monterey. As you shared, it has been quite a year. On behalf of the California Arts Advocates board, we are grateful for your leadership and for all that your administration has done to keep the arts, culture and creative industries alive. Investments in the industry’s recovery were historic this year and we were thrilled that you signed the first state based creative workforce act, SB 628.

“At Californians for the Arts, educating the field to be effective advocates and learning about policies that impact their work is part of our mission.” says CFTA Board President Ron P. Muriera. “It is critical that this momentum continues and we encourage folks who work in the arts to join us as we continue to build awareness of the impact of our sector to California’s recovery.”

An act to amend and repeal articles relating to economic development, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget.

An act to amend the Budget Act of 2021 by amending, adding and repealing Sections relating to the state budget, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, budget bill.

An act making appropriations for the support of the government of the State of California and for several public purposes in accordance with the provisions of Section 12 of Article IV of the Constitution of the State of California, relating to the state budget, to take effect immediately, budget bill.

This funding request comes at a critical time for the arts and culture sector. The arts have been among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and performers are bearing the brunt of the sector’s 20% unemployment rate. It is projected that, without financial support, this sector will not fully recover for four more years. This $1 billion investment will have a profoundly positive impact on jobs creation, tourism, and tax revenue, and will maintain the stability of the arts we emerge from this public health crisis.

Pending approval of the Assembly Budget Committee and the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review, this document provides a summary of the Legislature’s version of the 2021-22 State Budget.

Final budget still to be negotiated with Administration by June 15, 2021.

The pandemic has also exposed deep inequities, with disproportionate impact and lack of access to funding and resources within rural areas and communities of color. All programs proposed would reach every corner of California and emphasize equity and investment in traditionally under-resourced and marginalized communities and organizations.

To fully address the recovery of our sector and to help stimulate economic activity, the 517 undersigned arts organizations, independent venues, cultural institutions, creative businesses, unions, service organizations, trade associations, and local governments request your support for a $1 billion investment in the 2021-2022 budget year, to be spent over four years: […]

“The tourism sector is a critical component of Los Angeles’s economy, and I am pleased to see investments in the budget that will help revitalize this industry. Additionally, I strongly support an additional $30 million in funding for the California Film Tax Credit to attract additional productions and good-paying jobs to our state. Finally, I support the proposal to invest $1 billion in the arts and cultural institutions, including independent venues, community access to arts, workforce development, and museums.”

Federal relief funds and windfall state tax receipts have given California a unique opportunity to make a substantial investment that could help stabilize the sector with several years of stimulus. This investment in California’s arts, culture, and creativity industries will help overcome the challenges of state-imposed COVID-19 restrictions on our ability to operate. We propose to allocate the $1 billion in the FY 2021-2022 budget year but allow the funds to be spent by December 2024.

“We really believe that what makes California unique and special is our creativity, our innovation. We have so many extraordinary artists that have struggled over the last year in particular and we want to bring that arts back into the public sphere, back into the public spaces and that’s a big part of this proposal.”

We need to increase funding for the CAC to at least $1 per capita per person. At the State’s current $26 million funding level, California only invests .73 cents per person. By comparison New York invests $2.31 and Minnesota over $7.00.

Increasing funding for the CAC to roughly $1 per resident will still place California far behind per capita investment of numerous other states. New York invests $2.31 per resident, while Minnesota spends more than $7 per capita. If we are to retain our claim as this nation’s creative capitol, we must demonstrate sincere commitment to art’s survival and sustainability.

I respectfully request that your committee and subcommittee consider takin the following actions for the 21-22 budget:

• Increase the amount of arts funding to $1 per person per capita in fundng with a $14 million budget increase to the California Arts Council. This would fund the California Arts Council at $40 million for the 2021-2022 budget year.

The agreement reflects a four-fold increase – from $500 million to more than $2 billion– for grants up to $25,000 for small businesses impacted by the pandemic, and also allocates $50 million for cultural institutions.

On behalf of the 324 undersigned museums, cultural institutions, and service organizations, we write to urge your support for early action on the Governor’s proposed $25 million in relief for cultural institutions in the FY20-21 budget and ask you to consider: (1) increasing the amount to $50 million, (2) making nonprofit, cultural institutions of all sizes eligible, and (3) giving priority to institutions with less access to other relief programs.

In addition to these measures to support Californians through the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Budget also advances long-term strategies for an equitable, broad-based economic recovery so the state can emerge from the pandemic stronger than before. Building on actions the state has taken to support California’s businesses throughout the pandemic, including emergency aid and regulatory relief, the 2021-22 State Budget makes investments across sectors and proposes supports for businesses of all sizes, including $777.5 million for a California Jobs Initiative, which focuses on job creation and retention, regional development, small businesses and climate innovation.

We believe that the current statewide funding level of $26M should be augmented with a one- time infusion of $15M, which would help augment California’s underfunded arts organization particularly serving communities of color and in rural areas that lack access to private funders to address emergency-related needs.

“We are grateful to Governor Gavin Newsom and to the Legislature for recognizing the value of state funded arts and culture programs in California by protecting the California Arts Council budget at $26 million in ongoing funds”, says Victoria Hamilton, Board President of Californians for the Arts.

First, we want to thank everyone who took the time to sign the letter to the California Arts Council (CAC) urging them to reconsider proposed changes to field-serving programs. You can read more about the issues we took collective action on and the signed letter at our #FundCAarts webpage.

 As we begin our review of the Governor’s 2023-24 Budget proposal and identifying Senate budget priorities, I write now to alert your office to the process we will follow for members to provide input on statewide budget priorities, and district specific budget requests.  For this upcoming 2023-24 fiscal year, new General Fund resources are anticipated to be limited. 

Last year the Assembly established two formal processes to accept input from member offices. Your input informs the Subcommittee hearing process and shapes the Assembly’s budget priorities. We have two different processes, one for overall budget priorities and issues and a smaller and more dedicated process for member district priorities. 

Dear CA Arts & Culture Advocates,

Welcome back, it’s budget season again in California but things look a little different this year. Between spiraling inflation, a weakening stock market and a budget that relies heavily on capital gains, this year’s budget proposal announced by Governor Newsom on January 10, 2023 is a $298 billion spending plan which takes into account a projected $22.5 billion deficit and is about 3.6% smaller than last year’s record budget. 

 What does this mean for the arts?

We are delighted the CA Budget package includes new investments in arts and culture for vital programs such as lifting up community cultural districts and arts installations in parks. We also celebrate the $120 million investment in thirty one district across the state.

On Friday, May 13, 2022, Governor Newsom released the May revise. Due to an increase in General Fund revenues estimated to be nearly $55 billion higher than January, the budget includes new proposals including $18.1 billion in direct relief to millions of Californians to help offset rising costs. The Legislature will review the Governor's proposals and then present their own recommendations. A budget must be sent to the Governor by June 15 at which time he has 12 working days to reduce or eliminate any appropriation contained in the budget and sign the bill.

Arts & culture has always been essential to our state’s economy and the wellbeing of its residents. This bill represents a long-overdue in investment in the workforce that sustains this work and is an indispensable part of California’s future.

This measure would declare that the Legislature joins Californians throughout the state in celebration of 2021 Arts, Culture, and Creativity Month and would recognize the significant role of artists as “Second Responders” in our state.

This resolution declares that the Legislature joins Californians throughout the state in celebration of 2021 Arts, Culture, and Creativity Month and recognizes the significant role of artists as “Second Responders” in our state

Current economic models are insufficient to allow SNPACs to pay all workers minimum wage. SB 805 is the first in the nation that would help assist our SNPACs create and preserve job opportunities for performers and people in the performing arts sector, particularly workers in marginalized communities.