Today, by a vote of 254 to 173, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Department of Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for 2010. The legislation allocates $170 million for the National Endowment for the Arts and an equal amount for the National Endowment for the Humanities. These funding levels are a significant improvement over last year’s levels, when Congress approved $155 million for each agency. We thank the House of Representatives for recognizing the importance of the arts to our culture and our economy.
The fight is not over, however. This week, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies passed a bill giving these agencies $161.3 million each. The Creative Coalition will keep working for a final bill that meets the funding levels approved by the House. Contact your Senators and let them know that the arts matter to you (click here to find your Senators contact information). Ask them to support increased funding for the NEA and NEH.