Federal grant cuts leave California arts institutions scrambling; lawmakers hear appeals for state backup

SACRAMENTO — Lawmakers and arts leaders warned at a joint informational hearing that abrupt federal actions and a proposed White House budget that zeros out the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) have already halted grants and disrupted arts programming across California.

The hearing, convened by State Senator Ben Allen and Assemblymember Chris Ward in Room 2100, brought national advocates, state agency leaders and local cultural organizations to the Capitol to describe immediate harms and to press the Legislature for state-level relief.

The concern is both practical and symbolic: Erin Harkey, chief executive of Americans for the Arts, told the committee federal rescissions have “created immediate financial scribe” for organizations and put “pass-through dollars” at risk — funds that local and state agencies use to leverage additional public and private support. Harkey said that since 2020 NEA awards in California exceed $70 million, including more than $8 million benefiting the California Arts Council, and that thousands of small community groups are now vulnerable.

Why it matters: State and local arts funding often multiplies federal investment. At the hearing, multiple speakers said federal dollars are a lever that helps California agencies and nonprofit partners match and regrant funds into underserved communities. Without those federal allocations, some programs — from K–3 arts curricula to community documentary projects and museum education — face cancellation.

What speakers told legislators

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