Policy & Legislative Work

CAC Policy Priorities

VISION: A state where Oregonians identify with, participate in, and support their local and unique contributions to our state’s diverse and vibrant creative economy.

MISSION: To foster statewide policies and funding partnerships that support and protect Oregon’s arts, heritage and humanities in every community across the state.

POLICY STATEMENT

The arts, heritage and humanities are a vibrant part of Oregon’s economy.   Arts and culture-related industries, also known as the “creative sector,” provide jobs, attract investments, generate tax revenues, and stimulate local economies through tourism and consumer purchases.   This sector includes both for-profit and nonprofit arts-related activities. Click here to read the 2010 Creative Vitality Index.

It’s not just about that night-on-the-town.

Everyday, thousands of Oregonians live their lives at the crossroads of art and commerce, following careers that demand creativity in return for a paycheck  –  think of shoe and sports apparel designers at Nike; Pendleton Woolen Mills spinning designs and promoting Native American culture while utilizing wool from a century farm in Eastern Oregon; or your local nonprofit that employs musicians and supports after-school music education in your community.

In addition, because they enhance quality of life, the arts and culture are an important complement to community development, enriching local amenities and attracting young professionals to an area.

A number of factors underscore the connection between creativity and economic competitiveness in the global marketplace. For example:

• Companies’ decisions about where to locate their businesses often are influenced by factors such as the ready availability of a creative workforce and the quality of life available to employees. The Office of Film & Video works to attract companies to Oregon.
• Arts and culture can play a major role in community development and redevelopment by creating new jobs and fostering an environment and amenities that attract talented young workers. Visit Oregon Mainstreet to this idea in action.
• Tourism centered on arts and culture can contribute to state and local economic vitality by providing a diversified and sustainable means for creating jobs and attracting revenue.  The High Desert Museum in Bend illustrates how arts can help create a vibrant tourism center.

ONGOING LEGISLATIVE INITIATIVES

• Maintain and enhance existing mechanisms of public-private partnership funding for arts, heritage and humanities, including support for the budgets of the Oregon Arts Commission, Office of Film and Video, the Oregon Historical Society, Oregon MainStreet, and SHPO;

• Protect and build the Cultural Trust as it grows into its planned mission of becoming a $200 million endowment for arts, heritage and humanities by maintaining the Cultural Trust tax credit for qualifying contributions, continuing the Trust license plate program, and protecting dedicated revenues from all future sales of the Mill Creek Property;

• Rebuild the integrity of the Cultural Trust with Oregonians by seeking repayment of $1.8 million in funds taken by the 2009 Legislature;

• Support artists, organizations and schools to create effective working partnerships and arts-rich learning environments through development and design of coordinated public education strategies with arts at the core; and

• Call attention to and educate policy makers on the varied components of the creative economy, including both for-profit and nonprofit arts-related activities, and the impacts of proposed legislation on arts, heritage and humanities.