Fwd: Important information about HB2850
OKC Improv
Sue Ellen Reiman
From: Peter Dolese <pdo...@artscouncilokc.com>
Date: Tue, Feb 11, 2014 at 4:08 PM
Subject: Important information about HB2850
To: Peter Dolese <pdo...@artscouncilokc.com>
Cc: "robbie....@okc.gov" <robbie....@okc.gov>
To: Arts Council of Oklahoma City Member Agencies
From: Peter Dolese, Executive Director
RE: Important information concerning recent bills that could eliminate the State Arts Council
There has been a lot of information circulating recently about the Governor’s State of the State address. In that address Governor Fallin outlines her new budget and her suggestions for what areas of government should be cut in her opinion. Because there has been a lot of information distributed about all this that could be more than a little confusing … Robbie Kienzle, Director of Arts & Cultural Affairs with the City of Oklahoma City, has consolidated the information below for your use.
On another note. I’ve been contacted by the media several times about this issue and they are confused thinking that our funding (the Arts Council of Oklahoma City) is on the chopping block. It is the STATE Arts Council funding that Governor Fallin is proposing to cut. Not the Arts Council of Oklahoma City.
Please read Robbie’s synopsis below and also please consider calling your congressman to voice your concerns over these issues.
There are three top priority issues:
1. HB 2850 eliminates funding to the Oklahoma Arts Council by 25% each year for four years:
Oklahoma City nonprofit organizations and schools rely on funding from the Oklahoma Arts Council, a state agency, to leverage matching private funds to provide community-based and education-based programming. From Lyric Theatre in the Plaza District and the Oklahoma City Museum of Art downtown to the Rodeo Opry in Stockyard City and schools throughout the district, the Oklahoma Arts Council’s impact reaches deep into neighborhoods city-wide. During fiscal year 2012, this impact included:
· More than 100 grants
· Grants totaling $1,137,045
· Grants for 54 Oklahoma City nonprofit organizations and schools
· An estimated $13,644,540 in private matching funds raised
In addition, Arts Council funding supports arts organizations and events that generate $29 million in state and local taxes*, therefore directly benefiting revenues to the City of Oklahoma City. As we know, vibrant arts and cultural amenities are important to companies considering relocating or opening offices in Oklahoma City and to employees and creative professionals who value quality of life when deciding where to live and raise families. Continued investment in the city’s arts and cultural assets is important in maintaining Oklahoma City’s momentum. Recent cuts to the Arts Council budget threaten an important factor in the city’s momentum.
Download the Oklahoma Arts Council Impact Report
http://arts.ok.gov/pdf/about_us/2013%20Impact%20Report%20(General%20Audience).pdf
____________________
*According to The Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts & Culture Organizations in Oklahoma (2009)
2. Governor Fallin’s proposal to consolidate the Oklahoma Arts Council, Oklahoma History Center and other agencies into the Department of Tourism:
Oklahoma Arts Council
Summary: Consequences of Agency Consolidation
- ACCOUNTABILITY AND EXPERTISE
- The 15-member, Governor-appointed Council is comprised of individuals with industry-related expertise who provide oversight to agency grants and programs.
- The Council is actively involved in the objective grant making process, ensuring that grant making does not become politicized and remains a competitive, credible, and transparent process.
- The agency’s staff performs functions critical to the fulfillment of the mission of the agency including grants review, development and design of grant programs, and grant and program evaluation. The agency’s service programs are unique and specific services, which provide professional and community development expertise.
- EFFICIENCY IN STATE GOVERNMENT
- The Oklahoma Arts Council’s administrative budget is 7%. With low administrative costs, investing in the state’s arts and cultural industry yields significant economic results with $1 in public funding seeding: $14 in private matching funds, and $8 in local and state tax revenue.
- With recent and significant budget cuts, agency staff has doubled and even tripled up on duties. All agency personnel perform or support multiple and non-duplicative functions. Any reduction or consolidation would jeopardize service to constituents.
- With consolidation, $1,541,357 of federal and regional funds would be at risk. Federal and regional funding sources require the Arts Council to have: its own director and qualified staff; a designated budget; develop and implement a state arts plan; and, an independent governing board.
- UNIQUE MISSION
The Oklahoma Arts Council impacts communities and schools statewide by:
- Supporting Oklahoma’s thriving arts and cultural industry through competitive grants to rural and urban communities
- Developing a robust cultural infrastructure through a Leadership Arts program, statewide Arts Conference, and Cultural District Initiative
- Preserving our history and cultural heritage by managing and cultivating the Capitol art collections
- Educating Oklahoma’s creative workforce through arts education in schools, life-long learning, and industry-specific professional development
Thank you for the opportunity to present the Oklahoma Arts Council’s mission, programs, and the benefits of remaining an autonomous state agency. The Council has several concerns with any plan to consolidate our agency into the Department of Tourism or other state agency, which would affect our mission and impact on the state.
- ACCOUNTABILITY AND EXPERTISE
- Council - The 15-member, Governor-appointed Council provides oversight to agency grants and programs and is comprised of individuals with industry-related expertise and experience as: practicing visual and performing artists; arts and nonprofit administrators with knowledge in board governance, foundation, legal and/or business experience; and, experts in exhibition design and collections care, among others. The Council is actively involved in the objective grant making process, ensuring that grant making remains a competitive, credible, and transparent process.
- Grant programs and process - Our grant programs are competitive grants that have been designed for specific nonprofit constituencies. The streamlined and efficient processes are accessed through an online system, which is built and maintained in-house and hosted through Oklahoma Management and Enterprise Services. A move would result in additional costs in retooling the system, the website, and the online process. The Council’s grant process is a nationally recognized and thorough vetting process that involves experts in peer panel review, as well as staff and Council member review to ensure accountability and the application of the agency’s grant criteria. This process, in large part, accounts for the support for the agency’s programs across the state.
- Staff - The agency’s staff performs multiple and varied functions critical to the fulfillment of the mission of the agency including grants review, development and design of grant programs, and grant and program evaluation, among others. Recent budget cuts have resulted in staff taking on additional responsibilities to ensure that our grants and services have not decreased, with all positions on staff performing arts-related tasks and support. The majority of the agency’s staff has advanced degrees or equivalent work experience in industry-related fields and are public employees dedicated to our agency’s mission. With consolidation, constituents would lose the expert level of support and services that our agency provides.
- SAVINGS - There would be no cost savings in any consolidation, as $1,541,357 of federal and regional funds would be at risk. Federal and regional funding sources to the state require the Arts Council to have: its own director and qualified staff with relevant experience; a designated budget; be designated by the state as programmatically and administratively responsible for developing and implementing a state arts plan; and, an independent governing board.
- $673,200 in federal funds specifically allocated to grant programs across the state, and
- $868,157 of economic impact through funding to Oklahoma by Mid-America Arts Alliance, our regional service organization.
- IMPACT - Our agency awards matching grants to K-12 schools, arts and cultural organizations, and local governments in order to increase resources available for producing community arts and arts education programs throughout Oklahoma.
- Creating Jobs - The arts and cultural industry in the state sustains more than 10,000 jobs and is a key component in attracting and retaining new residents and businesses, and directly impacts our state’s economy by more than $314 million annually. Our grants and programs provide financial support to organizations that retain jobs in this industry, and our professional development and training retains creative personnel in the arts in both the public and private sectors.
- Educating our citizens - Arts education is a key tool in the development of critical thinking skills in our future workforce and for our citizens to compete globally. Arts education is a major component of our agency’s grants and programs, requiring in-depth expertise in curriculum design, state and federal mandates, and school policy and culture. The funding of these programs is not duplicated elsewhere and consolidating our agency would eliminate federal funds that support these programs.
- Revitalizing communities - Strong arts programs create a better quality of life, revitalize neighborhoods, and transform communities into thriving cultural hubs. One of the Council’s programs to revitalize neighborhoods is the Cultural District Initiative – a program to develop and certify arts and cultural districts in rural communities and urban neighborhoods, revitalizing once blighted streets into vibrant commercial districts that sustain small, local businesses.
- Delivering superior service programs - The agency’s service programs, such as the Leadership Arts Program, the statewide Arts Conference, and the role we serve as collections manager for the Capitol Art Collections are unique and specific services and provide professional development opportunities that require specific skill sets and expertise. These programs are essential to the continued development of the industry as well as community development. A move would create uncertainty throughout the state regarding the continuation of these programs.
- HISTORY
- Legacy - Through the exceptional work over the last three decades by former executive directors - Betty Price, Suzanne Tate, and Kim Baker - the Oklahoma Arts Council has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading state arts agencies for its statewide programming, staff expertise, efficiency of grant and program delivery, and professionalism.
- Mission - The Council is the only state agency that supports Oklahoma’s thriving arts and cultural industry through grant programs, develops a robust cultural infrastructure through our professional development and training programs, educates Oklahoma’s creative workforce through grant programs and partnerships, and preserves our cultural heritage by actively pursuing conservation and preservation of the Capitol art collections.
- Future - In 2015, the Oklahoma Arts Council will celebrate its 50th anniversary as an agency. During its nearly fifty year history, the Oklahoma Arts Council has maintained a high level of transparency and accountability to our constituents and to the Legislature, and we look forward to continuing to serve our state’s citizens over the next half century as the state agency for the arts.
For additional information, please contact:
Amber Sharples, Executive Director
Oklahoma Arts Council
PO Box 52001-2001
Oklahoma City, OK 73152-2001
Historical Society Surprised by Fallin Budget
Historical society executive director Bob Blackburn said they haven't yet had a chance to figure out how the change might affect major projects because they didn't know anything about Fallin's proposal until she presented it Monday.
"We are going full-speed ahead with seeking legislative support for the OK Pop Museum, because we need an institutional home in Tulsa to serve the people of Tulsa better," Blackburn said.
The OTRD (Tourism) would get $35.9 million from the state — $3.7 million less than those six agencies get altogether now. The historical society currently gets half of its budget — $12.5 million — from the state. More than 70 percent of the agency's total budget goes toward museum and historical site programs.
Blackburn said he has no room for layoffs within his staff, with all of his managers actively working on preservation programs or fundraising.
“If you eliminate those positions, you're standing still," Blackburn said. "So where do the cuts come from? Well, obviously, you would eliminate programs. So which programs would be eliminated would be the big question."
Blackburn said they're willing to work with the state but were completely surprised by the proposal.
3. The moratorium on the Art in Public Places Program is still at risk:
In May, 2004, Governor Brad Henry signed into law Senate Bill 1347, “State of Oklahoma: Art in Public Places Act” a bill that supports public art in Oklahoma. The new law incorporates artwork in, on, or near new state buildings or those with major renovation projects. The “State of Oklahoma: Art in Public Places Act” requires that 1 1/2 percent of the cost of construction or major renovation of state-owned public buildings approved after September 1, 2004, must be allocated for works of art in or near the project. The act applies to construction or renovation projects costing $250,000 or more. The maximum assessment for any one project is $500,000.
While Oklahoma City builds on its policy of funding public art, the state appears to be moving in the opposite direction. During the 2011 legislative session, a group of state legislators successfully passed a bill that suspends the Oklahoma Art in Public Places requirement for state agencies to incorporate art into their capital improvement projects for the fiscal years 2012-2014. The justification was to improve the state's general budget deficit. The moratorium was enacted. However, as the Senate fiscal analysis had stated then--the moratorium does not impact the state's general budget in any manner. The moratorium is set to sunset in July 2014.
Overview of HB3296
HB3296, authored by Rep. Leslie Osborn (R-Tuttle), extends the moratorium on the Art in Public Places program which is currently under a moratorium which expires June 30, 2014. If a bill is not passed during this legislative session to alter the program, AIPP would function without any restrictions starting July 1, 2014. If passed, HB3296 would extend the current moratorium from June 30, 2014 through June 30, 2017.
Best regards,
Peter Dolese
Executive Director
Arts Council of Oklahoma City
400 West California, Oklahoma City, OK 73102
Direct: 405.270.4882 | Main: 405.270.4848
www.artscouncilokc.com | Facebook | Twitter @artscouncilokc
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