What UCA Does for You: National Arts Advocacy Day

Recap of Arts Advocacy Day visits with Utah’s Federal Delegation

April 13. 2010 Beth Jones and Jayceen Craven Walker


UCA board members Beth Jones and Jayceen Craven Walker traveled to Washington D.C. to participate in Arts Advocacy Day on April 12 - 13, 2010. They represented you, our Utah Cultural Alliance members to Utah's Federal delegation. The Federal delegation members were not in their offices for the day so they met with their staffers.

Beth and Jayceen requested their support for:

1. NEA. Increase funding support from $167 million to $180 million.

2. Urge the FCC to expand Part 74 eligibility for licensing of wireless microphones to include performing arts organizations and venues, educational facilities, religious institutions and museums. This expanded licensing eligibility would also ensure these entities access to all interference protection measures.

3. Appropriate $53 million for the Arts in Education programs in the Labor-HHS Education bill. This includes VSA Arts programs and services currently zeroed in the President’s budget.

4. Support an appropriation of $50 million for the Office of Museum Services within the IMLS line item through the Labor-HHS bill. This includes the Save America’s Treasures program. This provides funding for bricks and mortar and is one of the few to do so.

What they left behind:

1. Provided each federal legislator with a Creative Industries map which indicates how many arts/cultural jobs are within their district.

2. A handout that included organizations in their district that received funding from the NEA or emergency funding from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

3. A request for the delegation to join either the House or Senate Cultural Caucus. Congressman Jim Matheson and Senators Bennett and Hatch already belong to their respective caucuses.