Subject: Funding (NEH/NEA): Budgets Increased (NHA Release)
NINCH-ANNOUNCE (david@ninch.org)
Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000 14:18:33 -0400
Message-Id: <v0421010db60cf7f39cfa@[192.100.21.22]> Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000 14:18:33 -0400 To: ninch-announce@cni.org, bb-all@ninch.org From: NINCH-ANNOUNCE <david@ninch.org> Subject: Funding (NEH/NEA): Budgets Increased (NHA Release)
NINCH ANNOUNCEMENT
News on Networking Cultural Heritage Resources
from across the Community
October 13, 2000
NEH/NEA Budgets Increased
>Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000 13:25:29 -0400 (EDT)
>From: John Hammer <jhammer@cni.org>
>To: Multiple recipients of list <nha-announce@cni.org>
>Subject: NEH/NEA Budgets Increased (fwd)
>
>TO: NHA Members & Friends
>FR: John Hammer and Jessica Jones
>
>RE: Short end-of-the-appropriations-cycle report for possible use in
>newsletters ---
* * * * * * * * * * *
On October 11, President Clinton signed HR 4578, the Interior and Related
Agencies appropriations bill for FY-2001. Flanked at the Rose Garden
signing by NEA Chairman Bill Ivey and NEH Chairman Bill Ferris, the
President hailed the bill as "a truly historic achievement, achieved in a
genuine, bipartisan spirit to create a permanent basis for preserving our
natural heritage and advancing our common artistic and cultural values".
The bill includes $5 million additional for the National Endowment for the
Humanities (NEH) bringing the total to $120.26 million. This is the
second year in a row that the NEH has been increased. (In the years
1996-1999, NEH was flat funded at $110 million, down nearly 40% from the
FY-95 appropriation of $177 million.)
The important story in HR 4578 is that the National Endowment for
the Arts (NEA) was boosted $7 million, the first increase since 1995. The
improved circumstances for the NEA reflect the declining power of the
Conservative Action Team (CAT) in the House of Representatives. Although
there was some hostility in the Senate after the 1994 elections in which
the GOP captured control of both houses, the House has been the graveyard
for improving arts funding up to this year. For NEH supporters, the NEA
news could not be more welcome -- Some of NEH's closest and firmest
supporters in Congress have been leaders in opposing further improvement
of NEH funding until the NEA problem begins to be resolved. With the
passage of this appropriation, both agencies will be in the best position
to rebuild in years.
Senator Slade Gorton (R-WA), chair of the interior appropriations
subcommittee, deserves special praise for pressing the House leaders to
relent. The face-saving strategy developed by Senator Gorton, probably in
consultation with Rep. Ralph Regula (R-OH), his counterpart in the House,
was to separate the $7 million increase for NEA into a different budget
line tagged to Challenge America Arts Fund (i.e., synonymous with the
major existing initiative of NEA) to be administered by NEA. Many were
amazed that the House GOP leaders would settle for such a slight cover --
Apparently their reading was that it is time to step back from the issue.
Here are the comparative appropriations figures for NEH, NEA, and the
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Table: Cultural Agency Appropriations (in millions of dollars)
........ FY-2000 .. FY-2001 .. FY-2001 .. FY-2001 .... FY-2001 . Conference
........ Enacted .. Request .... House ... Senate . Conference .vs. Enacted
__________________________________________________________________________
NEH ... 115.260 .. 150.000 .. 115.260 .. 120.260 .... 120.260 ..... +5.000
NEA .... 97.628 .. 150.000 ... 98.000 .. 105.000 .... 105.000 ..... +7.372
IMLS ... 24.307 ... 33.378 ... 24.307 ... 24.907 ..... 24.907 ..... +0.600
Source: Conference Report 106-914 to accompany HR 4578 (29-Sep-00).
_________________
Byline: John Hammer & Jessica Jones, National Humanities Alliance
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