DPE Commends the Biden Administration’s Proposed Federal Arts Funding Levels
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Katie Barrows
Communications Director
P: 202-549-5991
kbarrows@dpeaflcio.org
WASHINGTON, June 1, 2021 - President Joe Biden released his administration’s budget which included $201 million in funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for FY2022, $177.5 million in funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for FY2022, and an advance appropriation of $475 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE) President Jennifer Dorning released the following statement in response to the proposed funding levels for the NEA, NEH, and CPB:
“We are excited to see the Biden administration take a promising step towards the big bold action needed to put creative professionals back to work and build the arts back better.
In proposing $201 million in funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), President Biden has provided a path for the agency to quickly get to a funding level of $331 million, which amounts to one dollar per capita and, adjusted for inflation, is the high water mark for funding historically. Additionally, we are also excited to see a proposed increase in funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and commend the continued full funding of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
NEA and NEH funding is critical to putting union creative professionals to work in small towns and big cities all across the United States. The arts are also important to local economies more broadly through the spillover effect of spending by those who engage with performances and events. Union creative professionals also play a key role in carrying out the mission of the CPB.
This past year showed that the federal arts agencies have the capacity to distribute a high level of funding effectively and we should utilize that capacity as we build a more prosperous, sustainable economy for all.
We applaud the Biden administration’s commitment to racial equity and justice, which can be seen throughout the FY2022 budget. Earlier this year, DPE and our affiliated unions in the arts, entertainment, and media industries released a policy agenda for advancing DEI in the arts, entertainment, and media, which included attaching DEI objectives to federal arts funding and establishing a chief diversity officer at the federal arts agencies. As Congress works with the Biden administration to approve the NEA, NEH, and CPB appropriations requests, we urge them to utilize our policy agenda to achieve DEI objectives in the arts, entertainment, and media industries.
We look forward to continuing to work with the Biden administration and Congress on policies that create better workplaces and industries for professionals.”
About DPE
The Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE) is a coalition of 24 unions representing over four million professional and technical union members. DPE affiliate unions represent professionals in over 300 occupations in education and healthcare; science, engineering, and technology; legal, business, and management; media, entertainment, and the arts; and public administration.