Dear Friends and Colleagues,
We’re writing to share an exciting milestone for CACO and for Oregon’s arts, culture, heritage, and humanities sector. Over the past several months, CACO completed the Big Re/Think, a statewide listening and learning process that brought together hundreds of artists, cultural leaders, funders, legislators, and community members from across Oregon to reflect on where our sector stands and where it needs to go. Those conversations, paired with a full-day board retreat this April, helped shape a clear, sector-informed direction for CACO heading into the 2027 legislative session.
What we heard was both sobering and energizing. And what emerged is a 2027 agenda built directly from the voices of the field.
CACO’S 2027 Legislative Priorities
Guided by the Big Re/Think and shaped by our board, CACO will pursue an ambitious slate of priorities in the 2027 session. We will focus on near-term legislative wins while also laying the groundwork for longer-term, transformational change.
Near-Term Priorities for 2027:
- Renewing and expanding the Oregon Cultural Trust tax credit – expanding the caps for individuals and couples to meaningfully grow the private contributions flowing through the Oregon Cultural Trust into our state’s cultural sector.
- Securing and growing the Oregon Arts Commission (OAC) grants budget so OAC funding finally scales to match the sector’s needs and reach across the board.
- Securing approval of the next Cultural Resource Economic Fund (CREF) slate through lottery bonds for major capital projects across the state, with General Fund support of smaller projects – sustaining a vital pipeline of cultural infrastructure investment across Oregon.
Longer-Term Goals We’re Advancing:
- Developing and championing a unified, sector-wide message and long-term vision for arts, culture, heritage, and humanities in Oregon – this is some of the most consistent feedback from the Big Re/Think and the foundation that strengthens every other priority on this list.
- Fully funding the Oregon Cultural Trust.
- Strengthening arts and music education statewide as a core part of K–12 education and for lifelong learning opportunities.
- Pursuing new dedicated funding streams for the arts and culture sector.
- Partnering with OAC and OCT leadership on a merged, semi-independent state agency.
- Advancing social prescription models that formalize our sector’s role in health and wellbeing
Together, these priorities reflect a shared belief that arts, culture, heritage, and humanities are not a luxury, but essential to Oregon’s communities, economy, and quality of life. In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll be sharing more about each priority and the many ways your organization and community can engage.
An Invitation
This is a pivotal moment. With a gubernatorial election year underway and the 2027 session on the horizon, the conditions exist to make real, lasting progress so long as we move forward with clarity, coordination, and ambition. CACO is ready to lead, and we want you with us.
We are grateful to the hundreds of Oregonians who participated in the Big Re/Think, to our board, and to the members and partners who make this work possible. If you have questions, want to discuss how your organization might engage in CACO’s 2027 advocacy work, or are simply ready to lend your voice, please reach out. We want to hear from you.
With gratitude and determination,
Dana Whitelaw
Board Chair, Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon
Peter Bilotta
Board President, Cultural Advocacy Coalition Foundation