House Approves FY04 Interior Appropriations Bill; Arts to Receive A Bigger Piece of the Pie
With the passage of the FY04 Interior Appropriations Bill by the U.S. House of Representatives, the arts will get a little bit more funding from the federal government in the coming year. With a final tally of 225-200, the House voted Thursday in support of the bill, which includes a $10 million increase for the National Endowment for the Arts and a $5 million increase for the National Endowment for the Humanities. The bipartisan amendment was co-sponsored by Representatives Christopher Shays (R-CT), Jim Leach (R-IA), Louise Slaughter (D-NY), and Norm Dicks (D-WA). Today’s vote brings the House FY04 funding level for the NEA to a total of $127 million.
An amendment offered by Representative Thomas Tancredo (R-CO) that would have decreased NEA funding by $50 million was defeated by a vote of 112 to 313.
This is the second year in a row that the House has shown its support for the NEA by approving an increase in funds, adding a sum of $10 million on to the FY 2004 budget request made by President George W. Bush for $117.480 million, an amount that already had exceeded the FY2003 allotment of $115.731 million. Although the funding still lags significantly behind the $170 million NEA budget that was consistent throughout the early 1990s, any increase in such a fiscally unstable time bodes well for NEA Chairman Dana Gioia, who came on board in February 2003.
Gioia, who is a poet and was a composer in his younger years, is optimistic about the latest demonstration of Congressional support of the NEA. “We welcome this much-needed, positive development. This vote of confidence in the NEA comes just as state, local, and organizational arts budgets across the country are being slashed. These funds will greatly enhance our ability to deliver the finest arts and arts education programs to all regions of the country. All Americans should be encouraged that the House recognized this as a worthy investment that will pay significant cultural and even economic dividends to communities across the country.”
Gioia’s dedication to music was apparent at the American Symphony Orchestra League’s 58th National Conference last month during his keynote address in which he assured attendees that he was aware of the problems facing American orchestras. He also summed up his approach to music with a quote from Lou Harrison, “Cherish, conserve, consider, create”—a motto that he admits keeping above his desk.
The next step for securing federal funds for the NEA will come after the August recess when the Senate will take up its version of the NEA’s funding bill for a vote. Earlier this month, the Senate Appropriations committee approved $117 million for the NEA.