Great news!  The U.S. Senate has just passed their Interior Appropriations bill for FY 2019 including $155 million for both the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities!  The final vote was a resounding 92-6 in favor.  U.S. Senate Interior Subcommittee Chairman Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) expressed her full support for the NEA and NEH this morning on the Senate floor ensuring "that the National Endowment[s] for the Arts and Humanities receives the level of support that I believe is important."

Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) on the U.S. Senate floor this morning supporting the NEA and NEH.

Today's Senate vote comes after the U.S. House passed their version of the Interior Appropriations bill a few weeks ago which also included $155 million for both the NEA and NEH.  These approved appropriations bills may then go to a bicameral conference in September where select U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives would negotiate the differences in the two bills and then send the final version to the President, hopefully to be signed into law.  Congress hasn't progressed this quickly and efficiently through an Appropriations season since 2000.
 

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Summer Congressional recess is here!  The U.S. House began recess on Friday, July 27 and will go through Monday, September 3.  The U.S. Senate, however, will have a much-abbreviated recess and will only be in their home states August 6-10.  If you attend a town hall, rally, or other event where your U.S. Representative or U.S. Senators will be present, be sure to ask them about their support for the arts.  You can even check to see if they belong to the Congressional Arts Caucus or the Senate Cultural Caucus.    Unsure who represents you?  Click this link and enter your home address to find out! 

Interested in meeting with your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators in Washington, D.C. and gaining the latest arts advocacy training?  Mark your calendars to join us for Arts Advocacy Day as part of the National Arts Action Summit on March 4-5, 2019!  Registration will open later this fall, so stay tuned!
 

Michigan attendees at Arts Advocacy Day 2018 with former NEA Chair Jane Chu (center) and MI State Captain Sarah Gonzales Triplett (far right).