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Arts and cultural organizations urge lawmakers to restore state arts, humanities and tourism funding
Summary
Artists, museum leaders, festivals and performing arts centers told the subcommittee proposed reductions would cut programs, education and tourism; they asked the legislature to reverse reductions to Connecticut Office of the Arts, Connecticut Humanities, and tourism marketing line items and to restore designated grants for local organizations.
Representatives of museums, theaters, festivals and regional cultural organizations told the Appropriations Subcommittee that proposed reductions to arts, humanities and tourism funding in the governor's budget would curtail arts education, reduce free programming and lower tourism revenue.
Speakers at the hearing asked lawmakers to restore previously allocated grants and to consider additional resources for statewide arts infrastructure. Jason Mancini, executive director of Connecticut Humanities, described a portfolio of grant programs his agency administers with the Department of Economic and Community Development, saying those investments helped organizations through the pandemic and subsequently funded community programs, museum access and a Good to Great grants initiative.
Why it matters: Witnesses said public funding helps organizations deliver free and low‑cost programs, arts education in schools, professional development and tourism marketing. Multiple groups documented local economic impact — museum and festival leaders provided figures for visitor spending, jobs supported and tax receipts — and said state investments leverage private and federal dollars.
Key testimony - Performers and venue leaders (Palace, Bushnell, Schubert, Fairfield Theater, Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center and others) asked for increased directed support for performing arts centers, noting rising operating costs after years of level state funding. A coalition of four performing arts centers asked the committee to increase shared line‑item support from $787,568 total to roughly $1.1 million for the next biennium to account for escalating expenses. - Multiple nonprofit leaders and festival directors sought the restoration of Connecticut Humanities grants and the Connecticut Office of the Arts funding that underpins small museums, festivals and cultural programs. Several speakers noted Good to Great grants and Connecticut Summer at the Museum as programs that expanded access during the pandemic. - Regional service organizations asked the panel to restore funding for the nine designated regional service organizations that funnel state support and technical assistance to towns and artists; one witness noted that each of the nine receives $40,000 and that those grants are key to local leverage.
Quotes - Kalita Jones, a longtime arts administrator, said: “Arts and culture are not just about performances and exhibitions; they are key to cohesion in the community, education, and economic vitality.” - Amy Blamore Patterson of the Connecticut Land Conservation Council tied cultural funding to local economic development and open‑space stewardship by urging predictable investment in programs that attract visitors.
Requests and figures cited - Several organizations asked the committee to restore roughly $2,000,000 in combined cuts to arts and culture grants (witnesses described the aggregate reduction and urged restoration to prior levels). The International Festival of Arts and Ideas, Mystic Aquarium, the Wadsworth and other institutions cited specific line‑item asks in their written testimony or on the record.
Process and next steps - Advocates requested that the subcommittee consider bills before the legislature to provide ongoing funding streams and to restore one‑time pandemic ARPA investments now winding down. No formal vote occurred; witnesses asked the committee to restore grant lines during final budget negotiations.
Ending: Cultural leaders said state funding produces measurable economic return (visitor spending, jobs) as well as less‑tangible benefits — arts education, civic dialogue and public health — and urged the Appropriations Committee to restore line items that community groups say are vulnerable in the governor’s proposal.
