Lawmakers hear strategic plan to shore up California's creative economy; advocates press for $66 million in arts funding

SACRAMENTO — Lawmakers and state arts officials on Friday discussed a new strategic plan aimed at stabilizing California's creative economy and outlined implementation priorities while arts leaders pressed for immediate funding to keep artists and small cultural organizations afloat.

"California's creative economy is not just a cultural engine. It's an economic powerhouse," the chair of the joint committee on the arts said in opening remarks, citing the plan's estimate of nearly 1,000,000 creative jobs and about $300 billion in economic impact. The hearing introduced "California's Future Is Creative," the product of a legislatively established work group and a multi‑phase planning process.

The plan, developed with the Institute for the Future and coordinated by the California Arts Council, identifies six priority action areas including workforce preparation, business stabilization, revenue generation through cultural districts and tourism, cross‑agency incentives (climate and economic development), an equity lens for investments, and building state capacity to implement the recommendations. Rachel Hatch of the Institute for the Future summarized the research and foresight approach, saying it…