NEA, National Endowment for the Arts just has published a statement on the FY 2018 budget, thus reacting to Trump’s blueprint proposing the elimination of NEA. NEA also underlines that their 2017 operations remain unchanged: « We continue to make FY 2017 grant awards and will continue to honor all obligated grant funds made to date. In addition, we will continue to accept grant applications for FY 2018 at our usual deadlines. The President’s budget request is a first step in a very long budget process. The agency continues to operate as usual and will do so until a new budget is enacted by Congress. »
Here is the full statement from National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu, desperately showing how her hands are tied:
Today we learned that the President’s FY 2018 budget blueprint proposes the elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts. We are disappointed because we see our funding actively making a difference with individuals of all ages in thousands of communities, large, small, urban and rural, and in every Congressional District in the nation.
We understand that the President’s budget request is a first step in a very long budget process; as part of that process we are working with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to prepare information they have requested. At this time, the NEA continues to operate as usual and will do so until a new budget is enacted by Congress.
We expect this news to be an active topic of discussion among individuals and organizations that advocate for the arts. As a federal government agency, the NEA cannot engage in advocacy, either directly or indirectly. We will, however, continue our practice of educating about the NEA’s vital role in serving our nation’s communities.
