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- news@lemmy.world
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/16822259
Gov. Ron DeSantis gave no explanation for zeroing out the $32 million in grants that were approved by state lawmakers.
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Leaders of arts organizations in Florida, many of whom have worked in the state for decades, cannot remember a governor ever eliminating all of their grant funding. Even in the lean years of the Great Recession, at least a nominal amount — say, 5 percent of the recommended total — was approved.
Established arts organizations usually know better than to overly rely on nonrecurring state dollars subject to the discretion of politicians, said Michael Tomor, executive director of the Tampa Museum of Art. But to cut funding at a time when arts organizations are still struggling to recover from the coronavirus pandemic sends a concerning message “that taxpayer dollars should not be used in support of arts and culture,” he added.
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Mr. DeSantis, a Republican, gave no explanation for zeroing out the arts grants. His office said in a statement that he made veto decisions “that are in the best interests of the State of Florida.”
In all, Mr. DeSantis vetoed nearly $950 million in proposed spending and proclaimed that the remaining $116.5 billion came in under the previous year’s budget.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
For the past 10 days, Richard Russell has been rattled, poring over budgets and working the phones in an attempt to limit the consequences of Gov.
But in a move that stunned arts and culture organizations, Mr. DeSantis vetoed the entirety of their grant funding — about $32 million — on June 12, leaving them scrambling to figure out how to offset the shortfall.
In reality, Dr. Tomor said, organizations like his are tourism and economic drivers that also provide a public good, especially for children, older people and underserved communities.
The current process requires organizations to submit annual applications for vetting to the state Division of Arts & Culture.
In the past, leaders of arts organizations have been discouraged from seeking those earmarks and encouraged to apply through the grant program instead, Mr. Russell, of the Sarasota Opera, said.
Many people have moved to Florida in recent years, and cities like Sarasota and St. Petersburg, also on the Gulf Coast, have promoted the arts as part of their identity, becoming destinations for those looking for a lively cultural scene.
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