As Congress and the Trump Administration prepare the federal budget for Fiscal Year 2018, Americans for the Arts is working to remind our elected officials about the economic importance of federal funding for the arts, specifically through the National Endowment for the Arts. This morning, ads appeared in the New York Post and The Hill newspapers with the bold headline “The Arts Put America to Work.”

In the weeks leading up to "tax day," Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) reintroduced the long-standing Artist-Museum Partnership Act (H.R. 4948) that would allow artists the same tax benefits as other Americans as it relates to donations of works of art, including literary, musical, artistic, or scholarly compositions given to and retained by a nonprofit collecting institution. Last year during the same week, Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) sponsored a bill in the U.S.

Americans for the Arts wants you to elect art professionals from the field to serve on one of four network advisory councils: Arts Education, Emerging Leaders, Private Sector, and

Americans for the Arts invites all Americans to celebrate October as National Arts & Humanities Month (NAHM). Towns and communities across the country are hosting special events that capture the spirit that the arts and humanities bring to everyday life. 

Today, the Senate Finance Committee considered legislation to extend several expired tax provisions, including the IRA Charitable Rollover. The provision is a key tax incentive for charitable giving and an important funding source for nonprofit groups, including arts organizations. It most recently expired on December 31, 2014.

Today, Americans for the Arts and the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) presented South Dakota Lt. Governor Matt Michels with the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for State Arts Leadership, which honors a public official who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts at the state level. Michels received his award at the NLGA’s Annual Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education, and the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) will present South Dakota Lt. Governor Matt Michels with the Public Leadership in the Arts Award for State Arts Leadership, which honors a public official who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the advancement of the arts at the state level. Michels will receive his award today at the NLGA’s Annual Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana.

In this month’s Smithsonian.com magazine you will find their top picks for amazing small towns across the United States. These towns all have populations under 20,000, and were selected because of their number of cultural and historic attractions, food and drink destinations, and nature opportunities. The article states: “Think of this list not as a ranking but as a menu, with something for every taste—whether it’s country bluegrass, Florida’s white beaches, or Alaska’s blue mountains.”

Register today for the 2015 Annual Convention, taking place June 12–14, 2015 in Chicago!

The conference will take place at the Chicago Sheraton, with more than 40 breakouts, three keynotes, three preconferences, two Workshop Intensives, a dozen ARTventure Tours, and an opening reception at the Museum of Contemporary Art! 

Get the conversation about encouraging creativity and ensuring arts education in your community with a new series of videos by Americans for the Arts. These videos convey the stories behind importance of arts education, as told by children whose lives have been postiviely impacted by the arts. 

In September, we held a call for nominations for our Network Councils. Now it's time for you, our members, to cast your vote to determine which nominees will be elected to the following four Americans for the Arts' Network Councils.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Americans for the Arts, the leading organization for advancing the arts and arts education in America, announces its annual National Arts Awards honorees. The awards recognize artists and arts leaders who exhibit exemplary national leadership and whose work demonstrates extraordinary achievement. They are individuals who share a common belief in the power of the arts and arts education to enrich individual lives and communities alike.

This year’s National Arts awards recipients are:

This fall, the South Dakota Board of Education announced that they are seeking to change state standards for fine arts – as well as science and technology – to keep their students on par with other states and help them succeed.