News Room
Read the latest arts news
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The National Association of Counties (NACo) and Americans for the Arts today announced six winners of the 2022 Creative Counties Placemaking Challenge, supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. In the coming months, Americans for the Arts will provide virtual training and expertise as the teams explore arts-based strategies to meet policy objectives.
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Today, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) joined more than 90 federal agencies in releasing an Equity Action Plan in accordance with President Biden’s Executive Order 13985 on Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. The order outlines a whole-of-government mandate to advance equity for all Americans through a comprehensive approach to all government practices.
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Rep. Nydia Velázquez introduced a bill that would increase the Educator Expense Deduction to $2,000 and allow early childhood educators to take advantage of the tax benefit.
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The American Planning Association recently announced the formation of a new Division focusing on the intersection of the arts and planning to provide a unique opportunity for artists and culture bearers to achieve more effective engagement between the two disciplines, as well as a stronger platform to influence the planning profession within the American Planning Association and beyond.
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Nolen Bivens, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts, and Nina Ozlu Tunceli, Executive Director of the Americans for the Arts Action Fund, released a statement in response to the Biden administration’s proposed fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget.
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The public comment period aims to better understand how the Art in Architecture program can promote the goals articulated in a January 2021 Executive Order signed by President Biden, “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government,” as well as promoting civic engagement and participation and democratic values, and advancing social ties and economic development at the community level.
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For the first time since the post-Great Recession period, the year-over-year value add of arts and culture production declined in 2020, from $930 billion in 2019 to an estimated $877 billion in 2020. Even with that decline, however, the economic impact of the creative sector is significant: the sector represented 4.2% of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2020 and supported 4.6 million wage and salary workers.
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On March 15, 2022, President Biden signed the $1.5 trillion spending omnibus package passed by Congress on March 12. Considerations for the arts and culture sector in this spending package has been many months in the making and is the result of the dedication and leadership of arts advocates across the country.
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Americans for the Arts submitted testimony to the U.S. House Appropriations Interior Subcommittee calling for “…funding for both the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities at no less than $201 million each for FY 2023.” This is the level that the Biden Administration proposed for FY 2022, and was approved by the House; however, the final level in the Omnibus appropriations bills is $180 million.
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Americans for the Arts will convene more than 500 grassroots advocates from across the country for the annual National Arts Action Summit, held March 28–30. In 2022, the arts sector faces new advocacy and legislative challenges. Over the last 12 months, more pro-arts bills have been introduced in Congress than ever before in U.S. history. Through shared leadership and by presenting a thoughtful, unified message, advocates can ensure their voice is heard by decisionmakers when Congress considers issues like the budget, creative economy, and job creation throughout the year.
