Investing in the Arts: 2 budget proposals to support
Californians for the Arts and California Arts Advocates are in support of Governor Newsom’s budget proposal of $10 million in one-time funds to the California Arts Council (CAC), including $9 million for the Cultural Districts program and $1 million for disaster preparedness to protect cultural artifacts. We are also in support of Assemblymembers Lorena Gonzalez and Christy Smith’s budget proposal for $20 million one-time funds to the CAC but respectfully of the Legislature this proposal be ongoing.
Governor Newsom’s Budget Proposal of $10 Million
Governor Newsom’s budget proposal for the Cultural Districts program and disaster preparedness to protect cultural artifacts are programs worthy of state investment. The benefits of cultural districts include an increase in property values, tourism, incomes, employment, and while preserving community identity and heritage. They also create places for educational and social development.
The data shows that even as California is leading the nation in creative economy output, we still fall behind in terms of public investment in the arts. After the 2019-20 budget augmentations for the California Arts Council, California currently ranks 26th among the states in per capita ongoing general fund support for the arts with .71 cents per capita in spending, according to the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies. The historic high for CAC funding was in 2000-01 at $30.7 million. Factoring for inflation, we would need a total of $44.7 million in ongoing funding to match where we were twenty years ago. We can’t think of a better time in the State’s history to realize this goal. A $20 million ongoing investment in the CAC will ensure that California can truly call itself “The State of the Arts.”
An investment in public funding for the arts makes good business sense. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reports that in 2016, the arts and culture sector contributed $174.6 billion to California’s economy, representing 7% of the state’s GDP—a larger share of the state’s economy than Construction ($93.3 billion), or Education Services ($24.4 billion). The 2020 Otis Report on the Creative Economy states that 2.68 million, or 15.4%, of all jobs in California are in the creative industries, these jobs generate $650.3 billion in annual output. Many of the much-needed services and programs in communities across the state are offered by non-profit organizations that rely on contributed income from the public and private sectors. Without these subsidies, arts programs would only be available to those who can afford a high-ticket price or private tuition.
Increased public investment in the arts is an issue of equity and access. According to a James Irvine Foundation study from 2011, there are over 11,000 non-profit arts organizations in California delivering programs to our state of 40 million people. However, in the 2018-19 grant funding cycle, CAC grants only served 12% of all the arts organizations in California. There is clearly a funding gap and more funds will allow CAC to serve more people. Non-profits are critical as they have always served as the training ground for next-generation creatives in all sectors of the creative economy.
The California Arts Council provides annual grants to State Local Partners (SLPs), who are the official county-designated organizations that support arts and cultural activity in their communities. Out of 58 counties, California is home to 53 designated SLPs. The average SLP receives $40,195 annually from the CAC. Without access to increased ongoing funding, many would not be able to offer the vital programs CAC expects them to deliver in districts across California.
Assemblymembers Gonzalez and Smith’s $20 million One-time Budget Proposal
We also support Assemblymembers Gonzalez’s and Smith’s budget request proposal, submitted on February 6, 2020, for $20 million one-time funding to help small community non-profit arts organizations comply with AB 5, however, we respectfully request this funding be ongoing and include increased staffing for the California Arts Council.
We understand the legislature's goal to end misclassification of workers and support protections and fair pay. In the arts, this is only possible with new resources. Without new resources, the result of AB 5 will hurt employment opportunities, and reduce arts and culture opportunities at the community level. In fact, the implementation of AB 5 across the arts sector has exacerbated the existing problem of the undercapitalization of the arts and culture sectors. Even before AB 5, many of these small budget non-profit arts organizations were financially fragile as their educational and outreach programs lacked the funding they required to be delivered at a low cost or free. Now, with AB 5, we receive daily reports of organizations reducing programming or closing their doors altogether as they do not have the funds available to comply with AB 5. For many organizations, to comply with AB 5, operating costs have increased by 30-40%. If the State is going to make this an ongoing requirement for our sector, we will need increased and ongoing funding to address the increase in costs. This is not a one-year problem but an ongoing issue for our sector that a permanent increase for the CAC can help address.
We believe arts have a role to play, as evidenced by successful programs such as Arts and Corrections. Without ongoing funding, Californians will be deprived of programs that will help our Veterans suffering from PTSD, reduce recidivism in our state prisons, improve public safety and reduce crime, improve health and wellness, create a sense of place and connection, transform neighborhoods, increase graduation rates, and inspire civic dialogue. For California to truly lead as “The State of the Arts,” we need to invest in the infrastructure of our cultural institutions and celebrate, recognize, include and uplift the Indigenous and diverse cultures of California.