2017 Legislative Session Report - Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon

The 2017 Legislative Session was defined by budget negotiations, discussions of revenue reform and new taxes to fund transportation improvements. Arts and culture in Oregon received support for capital improvements and state funding at various levels for the State Historic Preservation Office/Heritage Commission, the Oregon Arts Commission, the Oregon Historical Society and Oregon Public Broadcasting. The Oregon Cultural Trust’s statute was unchanged, but the Trust is shouldering a greater portion of funding for shared staff, trending away from General Fund support for the Arts Commission’s budget.
Thank you to our arts and culture advocates who attended Advocacy Day and met with their legislators in person; testified at a public hearing or sent over 400 emails that went out to legislators in support of restored funding for the Oregon Arts Commission and the enactment of a Task Force on Equitable Access to Arts Education.
Session may be over, but the work goes on! Follow @oregonculture on facebook or twitter to find out when your legislators are holding town hall meetings and let them know you care about arts education and increased public funding for arts, heritage and the humanities in Oregon.
We hope you will continue to engage in this work as we shift from working in our State Capitol, to bringing these important issues to legislators during their district constituent meetings throughout the interim.
Review the details of which policy issues impacted the sector this session, as well as details on additional funding or reduced funding in the full legislative report from the Coalition’s lobbyist, Craig Campbell here:  2017 Session End Report – CAC