Revised Timeline for 2020-21 General Fund Budget & Action Alert

May Revise: Newsom presents mid May - a “workload” budget based on current economic projections and loss of revenue due to COVID 19.

June 15: Baseline Budget When the Legislature resumes, it will not consider new spending priorities except COVID-19 related costs, wildfire prevention, and homelessness funding. Budget subcommittees will be directed to agendize only items necessary to a baseline budget with additions only to recovery and response efforts.

August Revision – Given the three-month delay in the deadline for personal income taxes, the state will not have a complete picture of available revenues until August. Accordingly, a second round of budget deliberations in August will be necessary. Again, the need to revisit potential programmatic reductions is a possibility.


ACTION NEEDED

It is time to let our representatives at the CA Legislature know that the arts need ongoing funding in the State budget as they address public health concerns and economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are requesting the baseline budget of $26 million remain for the California Arts Council in the June budget and when the budget is reconsidered in August, if cuts must be made due to the economic crisis, that the California Arts Council be protected against any disproportionate cuts.

We have included a template letter outlining our advocacy ask but ask that you personalize your letter. A few things to keep in mind when crafting your letter:

  • Make it local and relevant-  Explain the negative effect the pandemic has had on the arts in your community, your organization, or for you personally. Use specific examples, but do not go into too much detail. You can summarize an issue in a sentence, and then use a link or hyperlink to articles or webpages which will allow them to read more if needed. Provide information about lost income and lost audience. You can relate those losses to state and county data as well. Discuss current challenges as well as those on the horizon and be honest about the severity of the situation.

  • Share why arts are essential. Talk about how you have responded to the pandemic. These should be positive stories about how the arts have had to innovate in order to reach and serve our communities, as well as other artists. Efforts to assist health care workers or specifically connect to children, underserved communities, veterans, seniors, or any other group that is disproportionately affected by the pandemic will be especially well-received. Be concise in your descriptions and provide links to more detailed information. Also, be sure to also submit these narratives to CA Arts Champion campaign.

First, find your CA Assembly Representative and CA Senator. If you have relationships with Members of other districts you should contact them as well, however we are encouraging advocates to contact only Representatives of their home address, work address, or both.

BudgetGuest User