NEA Releases Statement Following News of Elimination- 'We Are Disappointed'

As BroadwayWorld reported earlier this morning, as many have feared, the the Trump administration's budget plans will indeed eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities- the first time this has been proposed since their creation in 1965.

The NEA has released the following statement:

Today we learned that the President's FY 2018 budget blueprint proposes the elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts. We are disappointed because we see our funding actively making a difference with individuals of all ages in thousands of communities, large, small, urban and rural, and in every Congressional District in the nation.

We understand that the President's budget request is a first step in a very long budget process; as part of that process we are working with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to prepare information they have requested. At this time, the NEA continues to operate as usual and will do so until a new budget is enacted by Congress.

We expect this news to be an active topic of discussion among individuals and organizations that advocate for the arts. As a federal government agency, the NEA cannot engage in advocacy, either directly or indirectly. We will, however, continue our practice of educating about the NEA's vital role in serving our nation's communities.