In the News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 20, 2004

$1 Million in New Cultural Funding Included in House Committee Budget

(Boston, MA) - The House Ways and Means Committee called for a $1 million funding increase for the Massachusetts Cultural Council by adopting a MAASH proposal for cultural economic development grants to communities. The Committee proposed $8.3 million for the MCC, including the $1 million increase.

MAASH (Massachusetts Advocates for the Arts, Sciences and Humanities) and its cultural advocates from across the state urged the state to invest in the MCC cultural economic development program for the coming fiscal year to help cultural organizations, cities, and towns work together to create jobs. John Rogers, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, supported the proposal and created the John and Abigail Adams Arts Fund to honor the legacy of John Adams, who made state support for the arts, sciences, and humanities a priority in the Massachusetts Constitution.

Mary Kelley, MCC's Executive Director, said the Ways and Means proposal demonstrates the growing recognition that culture is a significant economic engine for Massachusetts.

"Whether it's through performances, exhibitions, publications, or by generating tourism, arts and culture are major economic catalysts for our communities," Kelley said. "We commend the House Ways and Means Committee for recognizing the value of culture, and for its members' willingness to invest in it."

The Adams Art Fund is designed to "promote innovations in the arts and humanities within the Commonwealth through the disbursement of cultural economic development grants," according to the legislation. Grant recipients would be required to match the grants dollar for dollar. John Adams was the author of the Massachusetts Constitution, which calls for state support for the arts, humanities, and sciences. Rogers (D-Norwood) said the new arts funding reflects Adams' belief that "culture and fine arts should not be accessible to the aristocracy alone; that the new nation he would help found would institute a government to encourage the availability of arts to all."

“Arts and culture have a refining effect on the human spirit, Adams felt, and that by enabling all citizens to experience this refinement makes for better societies," Rogers added. "This is the wisdom that we embrace in the creation of the John and Abigail Adams Arts Fund, and it is rightfully named after the founding principals who equally shared this vision for Massachusetts and America.”

The Massachusetts Cultural Council already supports several cultural economic development projects across the state. These programs grew out of the work of the Creative Economy Initiative, a joint project of the MCC, the New England Council, and the New England Foundation for the Arts. The Initiative's research revealed a vibrant creative industry cluster in the New England economy, employing nearly four percent of the region's total workforce, surpassing the number of jobs in several leading industries. The creative industry is also a rapidly growing part of the economy, with creative workforce jobs projected to grow 18 percent between 1996 and 2006.

“We applaud Chairman Rogers for his leadership and his vision that revitalizes the spirit and wisdom of John Adams,” said Dan Hunter Executive Director of MAASH, “Chairman Rogers recognizes the essential economic, educational, and social value of culture in the Commonwealth.”

The House Ways and Means proposal must be supported by the full House, then adopted by the Senate and signed by the governor, before it becomes law for fiscal year 2005. Debate on the House Ways and Means budget is scheduled to begin April 26.

"We want to thank the many MCC supporters across the state who have been working with MAASH to communicate to the Legislature the value of arts and culture," said Kelley.

About the Massachusetts Cultural Council

The Massachusetts Cultural Council promotes excellence, access, education and diversity in the arts, humanities and interpretive sciences, in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and contribute to the economic vitality of our communities.

For more than 30 years, MCC has invested in the cultural life of Massachusetts. The Council receives an annual appropriation from the state legislature and funds from the National Endowment for the Arts. It then makes thousands of grants to non-profit cultural organizations, schools, communities, and individuals artists, funding programs that use arts, science, and the humanities to build strong, diverse, livable communities. The beneficiaries of these programs comprise a cross-section of the population and citizens in each Massachusetts city and town.

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