Latest MD Arts Budget News

Bookmark and Share

The fiscal year for the state of Maryland runs from July 1st-June 30th of each year.

2011 Budget (July 1, 2010-June 30, 2011)
As noted below, the 2010 Maryland State Budget included a stipulation that the 2011 appropriation for the Maryland State Arts Council would be the same as the 2010 figure, namely $13.3 million. However, the Governor or the General Assembly is still able to cut that figure. Our strategy for the legislative session, which began in January 2010, is to focus on keeping the full $13.3 million in the State Arts Council’s FY 2011 budget.

As of January 21, 2010: the Governor's proposed budget has been released, and it keeps the Maryland State Arts Council's appropriation level with the 2010 budget at $13.3 million. The budget proposal now gets introduced into the Senate and the House of Delegates, and each of those will likely make revisions to the bill. MCA's focus is to work with legislators to ensure that the Arts Council's allocation is not reduced.

As of March 1, 2010: The Senate and House committee are holding public hearings for the portion of the budget that includes the Maryland State Arts Council's appropriation. MCA is working tirelessly to have good representation from the arts community at all hearings, as well as organizing meetings with many key legislators.

As of March 19, 2010: The Senate Committee on Budget & Taxation has recommended that the Maryland State Arts Council budget be kept at $13.3 million for FY 2011, which level funds the Council at the same amount they received in FY 2010. The committee did recommend a reduction of $500,000 to the Special Fund for the Preservation of Cultural Arts (the Governor's budget had included $1 million for this Fund), with another $500,000 going to local impact grants to the jurisdictions where the funds are being raised via electronic bingo machines.

As of March 24, 2010: At a decision meeting held on the 23rd, the House Subcommittee on Education & Economic Development has also recommended that the Maryland State Arts Council budget be kept at $13.3 million for FY 2011. Additionally, they recommended that the Special Fund for the Preservation of Cultural Arts be kept at the level set in the Governor's budget - $1 million. The full House Appropriations Committee meets on Friday, March 26th and will make the final decision on what to include in the budget bilsl (HB 150 & HB 151) that will be sent to the House floor next week.

In the Senate chamber, the Senate's version of the budget bill and the Budget Reconcilation and Financing Act (BRFA) were passed on the 23rd. You can find the language relating to the Special Fund for the Preservation of Cultural Arts in the bill (full text: SB 140) on page 153 and in the BRFA bill (full text: SB 141) on pages 44-45.



2010 Budget (July 1, 2009-June 30, 2010)
The 2010 state budget approved by the Maryland General Assembly in April of 2009 included a provision of $13.5 million for the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC). The 2010 budget also included a stipulation that the 2010 appropriation for the Maryland State Arts Council would be static, at $13.5 million.

Additionally, during the 2010 Legislative Session, Senate President Mike Miller added an amendment to House Bill 193 (HB193) which extended the license for certain electronic bingo machines in the state. Senator Miller’s amendment used a portion of the tax proceeds from these machines to create a ‘Special Fund for Preservation of Cultural Arts in Maryland.’ The Fund was created to provide emergency funds to artistic and cultural organizations in danger of closing down or terminating activities. The money estimated to be raised for the Fund for FY 2010 was $3 million.

After the budget had been approved, the state Board of Revenue Estimates began calculating the estimated total revenue for FY2009 for Maryland and it discovered a series of revenue shortfalls. Three times, the Governor was called upon to make cuts in order to balance the budget (as required by state law). In total, the cuts amounted to nearly $1.2 billion.

MCA orchestrated a successful letter-writing and e-mail campaign to keep the MSAC appropriation amount from being reduced during each of the three rounds of budget cuts.

Due to the extreme economic conditions and the drastic nature of the cuts needed, the Governor and the Board of Public Works transferred the available 2010 funds from the Special Fund for Preservation of Cultural Arts in Maryland into the General Fund.