Congress has continued to demonstrate bipartisan support for the NEA, passing a budget that funds the NEA at $207 million in FY2023, FY2024, and FY2025. Strong bipartisan support for the NEA has been essential. Advocates across genres and throughout the country are called upon now to urge their elected officials to support the NEA and the critical, independent work it does to bring the arts to everyone. Without adequate support for this agency, not only are direct grants threatened, but essential funding for state and regional arts agencies would be devastated as well. 

In May, the NEA issued termination letters to many grant recipients of FY24 and FY25 awards. The NEA also informed many applicants that were awaiting final confirmation of their FY25 grant awards that their projects would not be supported. According to the termination notices, this action was taken to realign agency resources with the new priorities of this Administration. This is an unprecedented reversal of approved federal support for the arts nationwide.

The President's "skinny" preliminary budget outline for FY26 proposes eliminating the NEA, as was requested in the Administration's first term. Congress has acted to maintain and grow NEA resources, and with good reason: the arts have strong bipartisan support among the American public, and the NEA's work is valuable to all parts of the country.