Update on arts and the national stimulus package

Americans for the Arts had this to say about the reinstating of $50 million for the National Endowment of the Arts in the federal stimulus package passed by the House of Representatives Friday and signed yesterday by President Obama (there’s a 2 p.m. EST webinar to sign up for, too):

Arts Recovery Funds Restored in Economic Stimulus Bill
February 13, 2009—Today the House of Representatives voted 246 to 183 to pass the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The bill includes $50 million in direct support for arts jobs through the National Endowment for the Arts and language that would have prevented museums, theaters, and arts centers from receiving stimulus funds was removed.

“It was not politics as usual in Washington, as the Congressional conferees’ final version of the bill seized the opportunity to provide much-needed stimulus support for the nation’s creative workforce. The National Endowment for the Arts will distribute $50 million of the stimulus funds to arts projects in all 50 states which specifically preserve jobs in the nonprofit arts sector that have been most hurt by the economic downturn.  Additionally, the final version of the stimulus bill further recognized the role the arts play in the overall U.S. economy by removing the Senate ban on state and local governments from using any of the recovery funds to benefit museums, theaters, and art centers,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts.

Americans for the Arts will hold a webinar on this topic on Wednesday, February 18 at 2 pm. Free for professional members, it will update arts organizations on the economic stimulus package and other federal sources of arts funding.

To register for today’s webinar, click here and scroll down to the end of the first news story, where you’ll see the registration link at the end of the webinar announcement.