President Releases 2007 Budget
February 6, 2006
Washington D.C. - President Bush sent his FY 2007 budget request to Congress on February 6, 2006, beginning the yearly appropriations process for the nation's cultural agencies and programs, including the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Office of Museum Services (OMS), Department of Education's Arts in Education programs, and Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
For FY 2007, the President has requested level funding for the NEA at $124.4 million and for the NEH at $141 million. However, the administration would redistribute $3.46 million out of the NEA's long-standing Challenge America program, and over half of this toward administrative salary and overhead costs. (The President requested an even deeper cut to Challenge America last year, but the Congressional Arts Caucus was able to successfully restore most of it.) For the sixth consecutive year, the President's budget has eliminated funding for the Department of Education's Arts in Education programs, which include funding for model arts programs and collaborations with schools, teacher professional development, and arts programs for at-risk youth. The President's budget also recommends cutting $53.5 million from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in FY 2007.
Americans for the Arts, the nation's leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts, encourages members of the public to write their Member of Congress and urge them to support increased funding for the arts. Visit www.capwiz.com/artsusa/issues/alert/?alertid=6841631&type=CO to read more about the proposed budget and to learn how you can make your voice be heard.