NYSCA Update - Good news for now, plan ahead for next year.

THE GOOD NEWS:
The legislature and Governor Paterson could not come to an agreement on any further mid-year cuts.

As a result, there will be no further cuts to the State Council at this time.

That is good news for those of you who had applications pending for October
and December, but please keep in mind that the state revenues are in free
fall.

TAKE CAUTION:
The upcoming budget for NYSCA will be drastically smaller.  The state budget for next year is to be released on December 16, a month earlier than usual, so getting the message to legislators now is still important.

Click here to find the names addresses and fax numbers of your Assemblymen and Senators.

Below is the letter we sent to Governor David Patterson, Speaker Sheldon Silver, and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos.

To Whom it May Concern:

The New York State Council on the Arts provides an invaluable life-line for the diverse ecosystem of artists living and working in New York State. NYSCA’s dedication to the preservation and development of the vast cultural resources of its citizens ensures that the arts can continue to thrive, from small independent artists to large established organizations.

The proposed funding cuts will have devastating, and possibly irreparable, effects on New York’s cultural environment and artistic legacy. This blow will not only affect the thousands of artists creating work in this state but will also inflict lasting damage on many other components of our society. Education, affordable health care, social services, and the arts are all essential to economic development.  If NYSCA’s $7 million cut goes through, it will result in a residual loss of revenue for the small businesses that depend upon our industry: restaurants, taxi cab drivers, graphic designers, printers, caterers, lumber yards, hardware stores, dry cleaners, fabric stores and department stores.  Unemployment will continue to rise as our organizations are forced to cut staff and the numbers of productions produced each season.

As part of our Artist Services membership program, Dance Theater Workshop connects the public to a vibrant community of over 650 independent artists and arts organizations.. The proposed $7 million cut would place these artists, and their ability to continue making creative and innovative work, in extreme peril. The effect of the NYSCA cut, on top of anticipated sharp decreases in personal giving, will cause many art groups to go out of business forever. This loss of funding will result in increased losses in box office revenues and, potentially, decreases from private funders as well. Essentially, this cut in State spending could set off a domino effect that would devastate the arts culture of New York State and create a situation, similar to the cuts in core services and funding for the arts which occurred in New York City in the 1970s, from which our economy could not bounce back.

The current, national financial crisis affects us all. Arts organizations have already lost corporate funding and individual giving which provide an essential foundation for financial stability. The withdrawal of State funds, many of which have already been approved will be the final nail in the coffin for numerous individual artists and larger organizations. This is not a cut that can be replenished from other sources.

NYSCA never recovered from the 60% mid-year budget cut implemented by Governor Cuomo in the late 1980’s. In the 1989-90 season, Governor Cuomo cut NYSCA’s budget of $59 million by 60%. With this cut, the budget will go down to $41 million by FY2010. Taking inflation into account, we’ve lost much more.

The two primary industries in New York City are the financial services sector and tourism, which is primarily driven by culture. The financial services sector has already been devastated by the current financial crises; we need to ensure that the arts and culture of the city will not experience the same collapse.

We urge you to re-examine the proposed cuts to NYSCA and keep in mind the impact to individual artists, arts and cultural organizations and the fragile cultural ecosystem while you determine the state’s budget. We know that you face many difficult decisions while preparing the budget and that there are numerous worthy causes lobbying for your attention and consideration.

Best regards,

Andrea Sholler, Executive Director Carla Peterson, Artistic Director