Help Restore Arts Funding NOW!

Thanks to our collective advocacy more than sixty members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives signed on to stop further cuts to funding for the arts, humanities, and sciences through the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC). This support is a strong endorsement of the cultural sector’s value, amid yet another challenging year for state finances.

Rep. Sarah Peake of Provincetown, House Chair of the Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts, and Cultural Development, filed Amendment 388 to increase state cultural funding through MCC to $11 million. Her amendment would reverse a proposed $1.2 million cut to MCC’s budget included in a House Ways & Means Committee budget proposal for fiscal year 2013 released Wednesday.

The Peake amendment was cosponsored by 60 State Representatives from across the Commonwealth—representing communities large and small, urban, suburban, and rural. A full list of co-sponsors is below.

Our challenge now is to assure passage of this amendment when the full House takes up the FY13 budget beginning April 23. Amendments must be approved by a majority of the House, which has 160 members.

Just a short call is all it takes!

If your Representative did not sign on, please contact them before April 23 and urge support for Amendment # 388 to restore state funding for arts and culture through the MCC!

Calls and letters from constituents living and working in communities represented by House leaders can be especially effective. Those include:

· Speaker Robert DeLeo (Winthrop and Revere)
· Speaker Pro Tempore Patricia Haddad (Somerset, Dighton, Swansea)
· Majority Leader Ronald Mariano (Quincy, Holbrook, Weymouth)
· Ways and Means Chair Brian Dempsey (Haverhill)

When the House finishes its budget, the debate shifts to the Senate, which will craft its own budget in May. The two chambers must then agree on a final spending plan before sending it back to the Governor for final approval. The new fiscal year begins July 1.

For the latest MCC budget news, please visit our Advocacy Action Center.

Supporters of Peake Amendment # 388:

1. Rep. Paul Adams of Andover
2. Rep. James Arceiro of Westford
3. Rep. Demetrius Atsalis of Barnstable
4. Rep. Denise Andrews of Orange
5. Rep. Bruce Ayers of Quincy
6. Rep. Ruth Balser of Newton
7. Rep. Carlo Basile of E. Boston
8. Rep. Nicholas Boldyga of Southwick
9. Rep. Antonio Cabral of New Bedford
10. Rep. Thomas Calter of Kingston
11. Rep. Gail Cariddi of N. Adams
12. Rep. Cheryl Coakley-Rivera of Springfield
13. Rep. Tom Conroy of Wayland
14. Rep. Mike Costello of Newburyport
15. Rep. Steve DiNatale of Fitchburg
16. Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier of Pittsfield
17. Rep. Kim Ferguson of Holden
18. Rep. Ann Margaret Ferrante of Gloucester
19. Rep. Michael Finn of West Springfield
20. Rep. Linda Dorcena Forry of Boston
21. Rep. Gloria Fox of Boston
22. Rep. Sean Garballey of Arlington
23. Rep. William Galvin of Canton
24. Rep. Denise Garlick of Needham
25. Rep. Anne Gobi of Spencer
26. Rep. Jonathan Hecht of Watertown
27. Rep. Brad Hill of Ipswich
28. Rep. Kate Hogan of Stow
29. Rep. Randal Hunt of Sandwich
30. Rep. Michael Kane of Holyoke
31. Rep. John Keenan of Salem
32. Rep. Kay Khan of Newton
33. Rep. Peter Kocot of Northampton
34. Rep. Robert Koczera of New Bedford
35. Rep. John Lawn of Watertown
36. Rep. David Linsky of Natick
37. Rep. Tim Madden of Nantucket
38. Rep. John Mahoney of Worcester
39. Rep. Elizabeth Malia of Boston
40. Rep. Paul Mark of Hancock
41. Rep. Kevin Murphy of Lowell
42. Rep. Alice Peisch of Wellesley
43. Rep. Paul McMurtry of Dedham
44. Rep. Aaron Michlewitz of Boston
45. Rep. Jim O’Day of W. Boylston
46. Rep. Smitty Pignatelli of Lenox
47. Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez of Boston
48. Rep. Angelo Puppolo of Springfield
49. Rep. Denise Provost of Somerville
50. Rep. Paul Schmid of Westport
51. Rep. Tom Sannicandro of Ashland
52. Rep. John Scibak of South Hadley
53. Rep. Carl Sciortino of Somerville
54. Rep. Frank Smizik of Brookline
55. Rep. Thomas Stanley of Waltham
56. Rep. Walter Timilty of Milton
57. Rep. Tim Toomey of Cambridge
58. Rep. Chris Walsh of Framingham
59. Rep. Martin Walsh of Boston
60. Rep. Alice Wolf of Cambridge

About the Massachusetts Cultural Council
The Massachusetts Cultural Council is a state agency that promotes excellence, access, education, and diversity in the arts, humanities, and sciences, to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and contribute to the economic vitality of our communities. The Council pursues this mission through a combination of grants, services, and advocacy for cultural organizations, schools, communities, and artists. With state funding, an annual state partnership grant from the National Endowment from the Arts, and funds from Bank of America, MCC’s total fiscal year 2012 budget is $10.8 million.