What’s at Stake:

We are urging lawmakers to champion three key funding priorities:

• Oregon Arts Commission: $10 million to elevate Oregon’s per capita arts investment and support arts organizations statewide. (HB 3189)
• CREF Slate Funding: Full funding for 13 shovel-ready capital projects across Oregon to create jobs and strengthen arts infrastructure. (HB 3191)
• Support for Large Arts Organizations: $5.5 million in one-time funding to sustain Oregon’s flagship institutions and match private donations. (HB 3189)

These investments are more than just numbers—they represent jobs, economic recovery, education, and the soul of our communities.

What You Can Do:

Contact your legislators today—whether or not they represent your district. The time is now to push them to act on behalf of Oregon’s arts and culture sector. Below is a draft letter you can send to any legislator or member of the Oregon Arts & Culture Caucus.

Sample Letter:

Dear [Legislator’s Name],

As the legislative session wraps up, I urge you to support critical arts funding:

$10 million for the Oregon Arts Commission (HB 3189) to support arts organizations statewide.

Full funding for CREF (HB 3191) to create jobs and improve arts & culture infrastructure.

$5.5 million for large arts & culture organizations (HB 3189) to sustain flagship institutions.

These investments are essential to Oregon’s economy, culture, and community well-being. Please advocate for these priorities before the session ends.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Organization]

Why Now?

The clock is ticking—these funding decisions will shape Oregon for years to come. Contact your legislators now and urge them to act before the session ends. Your voice makes a difference.

Thank you for standing up for Oregon’s arts and culture sector!

The post Urgent Call to Action: Advocate for the Arts in Oregon appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

THANKS to all of you who came together last week to share your stories and amplify our message in support of funding the arts & culture sector!

It was so wonderful to connect and spend a little bit of time together, and I found myself continually inspired by the brilliant and passionate testimony shared throughout the day. Cheers to all of you who showed up! In nearly 50 meetings with legislators and staff across the Capitol last Tuesday, we made an impact, and we could not have done it without each of you who attended.

If you attended this year’s Advocacy Day, we would love to have your feedback, as well as any insight you might have gained in personal meetings and interactions with legislators. Please take this 5-minute survey (we promise, it won’t take longer than that!). Your continued engagement and perspectives are so valuable to us as we look to carry the momentum of Advocacy Day through the rest of this session, and again, we are grateful!

One last shout-out of love and thanks (for now) to Ryan Fisher and Alec MacDonald-Factor, our fantastic lobbying team; Tom Fohn, Mark Woodworth, and the whole staff at the Elsinore Theatre; Lisa Lipton, Emily Cole, Dana Whitelaw, Claire Blaylock, the Oregon Arts Commission and Oregon Cultural Trust; and the CACO Board of Directors. All of them helped to make this year’s Advocacy Day possible.

And again, thanks to each of you who made the effort to get to Salem for the day. This work truly takes every single one of us–every email to your representatives, every meeting with their staff members, every relationship you forge and maintain–and we are so grateful for your time and energy. View some photos below.

We’ll be sure to keep you posted as the session moves forward, and we encourage you to stay in touch, continuing to share your stories, build connections, and inspire us all along the way.

Best,
Cassie Greer, Advocacy Day Chair

Advocacy pays off! We got mentioned in Senator Lisa Reynolds’ email update:

Andrew had the pleasure of meeting with folks as part of the Arts and Culture Caucus lobby day. From the World Forestry Center to the Children’s Theater and the Portland5, Senate District 17 is home to several important art organizations, which are vital to Portland and our state! As a member of the Arts and Culture Caucus, I urge my colleagues on the Joint Ways and Means Committee to fully fund these essential organizations.

The post Thanks for being great advocates in Salem! appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

Big thanks to those of you who joined our “Advocacy 101” session this week, as we look ahead to our April 15 Advocacy Day! If you were unable to be with us in real-time, you can watch our meeting recording.

The slide deck from our session is available here. You can access the additional resources we discussed in this folder, including a summary of CACO’s legislative priorities for this session, a one-pager on the OAC funding increase (HB3189), details on the current slate of CREF projects (HB3191), and the full ECOnorthwest Literature Review. ECO is distilling this into a one-page format that we share with you on (if not before) April 15.

The next important way to take action is to register to attend Advocacy Day on April 15. As part of your registration, you will be asked to provide the ZIP code of your residence and your place of work/organization. This will enable our NW Public Affairs lobbyist team to set up meetings with the legislators who represent your districts. We will share more details about meeting times and groups of attendees in the first week of April; part of our time on the morning of April 15 will be spent connecting with other advocates from your district(s) to prepare for your group meetings. 

Between now and then, you can prepare your own brief (1-2 minutes) personal story that illustrates:

• A powerful learning moment you’ve witnessed
• A powerful moment of connection between unlikely people
• An example of healing or contribution to a person’s well-being
• An example of how people saw the world differently after an encounter with art or history

Ryan Fisher at NW Public Affairs has provided a basic template for meetings with legislators:

• Vision: We want to live in a state where kids can visit museums and be inspired by music, theater and dance; where artists can thrive and create; and our communities can have cultural and artistic anchors with thriving economies.
• Problem: Right now museums and the arts are important to Oregonians, but there’s a disconnect between the tremendous value Oregonians see in the arts and the small investment the state makes in the arts and culture sector.
• Solution: By raising the Oregon Arts Commission’s budget to $10 million, we can move Oregon’s per capita ranking from 39th to 23rd—boosting investment from just $0.51 to $1.18 per person. This funding increase will ensure that Oregon’s vibrant arts and culture sector can grow and thrive. Funding the Cultural Resource Economic Fund (CREF) slate of 14 capital construction projects will boost local economies and strengthen the resilience of the arts and culture sector across every corner of our state.
• Next several people in the group can share their brief personal stories.
• Ideally, someone in the group can talk about economic impact using one of the talking points provided in the ECOnorthwest one-pager.

You can also register to attend and testify at sessions of the Ways and Means Roadshow, with six stops around the state over the next month. This could be a great spot to practice your 1-2 minute impact story, and it will also give you a sense of the many priorities that our legislators are confronting this session.

If you are newer to advocacy work or don’t have an existing connection with your elected officials, you can use this tool to find your legislators, including their email addresses and websites.

Here’s a rough outline of this year’s Advocacy Day activities, so you can plan accordingly:

• Monday, April 14 – 4:30-6:00 PM – Community Reception at Willamette Heritage Center, presented in partnership with the Oregon Arts Commission and the Oregon Cultural Trust
• Tuesday, April 15 – 8:30-10:30 AM – Advocacy Day kickoff at the Elsinore Theatre
• Tuesday, April 15 – 11:00 AM-1:00 PM – Floor sessions at the capitol; lunch on your own
• Tuesday, April 15 – 1:00-5:00 PM – Meetings with individual legislators

Thank you, all, for your dedication to the well-being of our sector! If you have questions or are looking for additional resources, please contact me at cassie@cassiegreer.com.

Best,

Cassie Greer
Advocacy Day Committee Chair

The post Advocacy 101 recap appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

Did you know?

Legislators can be influenced to vote a certain way if they hear from less than 50 of their constituents.

Talking to legislators about arts & culture is a highly effective way to encourage them to take action.

This year’s Advocacy Day will be on Tuesday, April 15.

Please save the date in your calendar now!

We’ll kick it off the night before at 4:30 p.m. with a community reception at the Willamette Heritage Center, cosponsored by the Oregon Arts Commission and the Oregon Cultural Trust. Register now!

REGISTER FOR ADVOCACY DAY 2025

Then, on Tuesday morning, we’ll gather at the Elsinore Theatre to hear some remarks, receive some final advocacy resources, and enjoy some community together, before heading over to the Capitol. A change for this year: we will schedule the meetings for you! Registration details coming soon.

Our message is powerful when our voices and intentions are united. In 2025 we are focusing on increasing the grants budget of the Oregon Arts Commission to $10 million to support providers across the state; providing capital to 14 arts & culture community projects; and encouraging investment in preservation and reuse of historic properties. Read more about these legislative priorities on our website.

We’ll help you get prepared for Advocacy Day. Read on!

Thank you for all you do to keep our Oregon communities vibrant. We look forward to continuing to advocate with and for you!

Best,

Cassie Greer
Advocacy Day Chair

The post Advocacy Day 2025 and Advocacy 101 training appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

• HB 3189: Improving access to state funding for arts & culture providers ($10 million) (more info)
• HB 3191: Providing capital to 14 arts & culture capital projects around the state ($9.325M) (more info)
• Supporting one-time funding for large arts organizations to match private philanthropic commitments ($5.5M) 
• HB 3190: Encouraging investment in preservation and reuse of historic properties (more info)

The post CACO priorities for 2025 appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

Big thanks to those of you who joined our Advocacy 101 session last week to learn more about HB4124/SB1582 as we look ahead to Advocacy Day on February 20!

If you were unable to attend, you can view the recording here.

While this session’s proposed legislation will not be officially published until the end of this week, you can find the draft bills here. Here are the highlights:

• $7.8 million for 14 capital projects:

Black United Fund: $ 900,000
Clatsop County Historical Society: $1M
Columbia County Museum Association: $400,000
High Desert Museum: $2M
Friends of Oregon Caves and Chateau: $455,690
Josephine County Library Foundation: $424,603
Painted Sky Center for the Arts: $500,000
PAM CUT//Center for an Untold Tomorrow: $250,000
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art: $150,000
Portland Playhouse: $300,000
Rainier Oregon Historical Museum: $500,000
Salem Parks Foundation: $150,000
Southern Oregon Historical Society: $500,000
Very Little Theatre: $350,000

• $5.6 million for anchor arts organizations (High Desert Museum, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Oregon Symphony, Portland Art Museum, Portland Center Stage, and Portland Opera)

• Resiliency grant funding for arts and culture nonprofits across the state, administered by the Oregon Cultural Trust and Oregon Arts Commission

They use the same text and language that will be included in the formal bill.

We also want to share the resources we discussed in last week’s session, so even if you don’t have time to watch the whole recording, I encourage you to explore these links and start reaching out to get meetings set up with your legislators.

We ask that you connect with the representative and senator that serve your region on or before February 20. Prepare to share why HB4124/SB5182 is crucial for your organization and your community.

Need to find your legislators?

• Find your legislator
• State representatives
• State senators

If you’re new to contacting your legislators or don’t have a significant existing relationship, please use the template below to get a meeting set up on, or in the runup to, Advocacy Day:

Greeting Rep/Sen. ___________:

I hope [Friday] finds you well. I serve as the [insert title and organization and mention if you’re in their district]. We [include information about your organization, who you serve, etc.].

I will be participating in Advocacy Day on February 20, sponsored by the Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon. I am reaching out to request a meeting to discuss [e.g., our project on CACO’s capital construction slate or priorities for the arts and culture sector before the legislature for consideration this session]. Please let me know if there is a time that will work best for the [Rep./Sen.] on February 20 or sometime in the week before.

As you connect with our policy-makers in Salem, you might find the Americans for the Arts Arts & Economic Prosperity Study 6 (AEP6) is a key tool for bolstering our collective message. It demonstrates in a tangible way how arts and culture help drive our local economies. Here are some additional tools:

• Economic Impact Calculator
• AEP6 Oregon Overview Presentation with AFTA’s Randy Cohen, presented by Oregon Arts Commission/Oregon Cultural Trust and Travel Oregon
• Visuals that Mario Mesquita created with key numbers and details from each AEP6 region

Thank you, all, for your continued work and dedication! If you have questions or are looking for additional resources, please don’t hesitate to be in touch with me personally at cassie@cassiegreer.com.

Best,

Cassie Greer
Advocacy Day Committee Chair

The post Did you miss Advocacy 101? We have you covered. appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

Advocacy Day 2023 is Wednesday, April 19, and we can’t wait to connect with you all. Here’s everything need to know.

• Zoom link
  Meeting ID: 820 9032 3185
  Passcode: 433885
• Our morning session will be fully virtual. This allows us to make our event accessible to CACO members around the entire state. The capitol renovation project is significantly limiting the number of people allowed in the building. We hope Zoom makes it easier for you to participate as an advocate with CACO.
• Schedule:
  9:00-11:00 a.m., Zoom only
  12:00-1:00 p.m., in-person celebration with music and speakers, Willson Park
  1:00-4:00 p.m., meeting with legislators on Zoom and in person
• NEW in-person meeting space at IKE BOX:If you’re not local to Salem and want to participate in the virtual morning session while also being at the capitol in person in the afternoon, join us at IKE BOX. Our previous communication mentioned meeting in the Health Services building, but that plan has changed. Instead we will have space in IKE BOX at 299 Cottage Street, a 6-minute walk to the capitol building. The Story Hall space has seating capacity for up to 40 and onsite wifi, although not very many electrical outlets. BRING YOUR HEADPHONES! Here is a map that details all the day’s activities for those of you who plan to be in Salem (disregard the info about the Human Services building, our previous meeting space).
• Advocacy Day packet: Contains details, resources, and links to more information about our legislative priorities. We’ll review many of these items during our virtual morning session. If you’re coming to Salem, you can grab copies of the talking points script and legislative priorities on the Art Bus, but you might want to bring your own copies or an iPad so you have these materials handy.
• Art Bus: You’ve seen the Oregon Coast Art Bus all over our promotional materials for this year’s event. You’ll hear more about the bus during our morning session and it will be onsite for the day in Willson Park, just west of the Capitol building. The Art Bus will be open immediately after our virtual morning session throughout the afternoon. The bus will have fun Advocacy Day buttons, hands-on activities, and projects as well as hard copies of information sheets about our 2023 legislative priorities. If you’re in Salem, be sure to stop by, make some art, and grab a button to wear for the day!

• Celebration Event: We will also be gathering in Willson Park during the noon hour for a little celebration event featuring performances from Tyrone Hendrix, PHAME Academy, the Portland Opera, and some very special legislative guests. You can grab lunch at a couple of food trucks in the park. Bring your own camping chair to relax in, as we know we’ll run out of places to sit…maybe also bring an umbrella, since it’s April in Oregon! We’ll gather everyone for a group photo at the end of the noon hour, and if you’re in Salem, we would love to have you join us!

• Questions: Call Cassie Greer at 574-229-5380 or Sue Hildick at 503-816-4701.

We can’t wait to see you (on Zoom or in person) on Wednesday!

Cassie Greer, Advocacy Day Chair, and Sue Hildick, Senior Advisor

The post Everything you need to know about Advocacy Day 2023! appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

It’s been two years since we’ve gathered to collectively advocate for Oregon’s vibrant cultural community. We’ve missed the opportunity to check in, connect, and share stories with you all.

With a new legislature in session and new leadership in Salem, now is the time to unite our voices, align our priorities, and remind our elected officials that the pandemic-related hardships felt throughout our sector are not going away anytime soon. When it comes to politics, we believe we are most effective when we are unified. We are strongest when we work together. You are an important part of this work to ensure that arts and culture continue to thrive in Oregon.

Similar to our virtual Advocacy Day in 2021, we will be providing an opportunity for all members and advocates to gather, no matter where you are located across the state. We hope you are able to join us!

Save the date for Wednesday, April 19 (add to your calendar), when we will spend the morning together virtually. We’ll dig into our collective priorities, receive some fabulous advocacy training, hear from special guests, and refine our impact stories. In the afternoon, we ask that you set up a meeting with your district’s elected officials where you can share your story and put your brand-new advocacy skills into action.

If you’d like to register in advance, you can do so here. Stay tuned for more details coming your way.

And there’s more to prepare you!

We know you’re doing an incredible amount of work to keep your organizations afloat. Your time at a premium. It can be bewildering to navigate the internal workings of Salem.

If you’re excited to participate in Advocacy Day 2023 but have no idea where to start, we invite you to join us at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, March 3 for a quick “Advocacy 101.”

Register for Advocacy 101 here.

We’ll give you resources, tips, and support for getting on the calendar with your representatives in April to maximize our collective impact.

In the meantime, here’s a quick preview of our legislative session priorities.

My best,

J.S. May

he/his/him

Board of Directors, President

Executive Director, Artists Repertory Theatre

P.S. Become a member of the coalition or renew your gift today, and stay tuned for more Advocacy Day 2023 information in the coming weeks. 
Questions about Advocacy Day? Write to Cassie Greer at cassie@cassiegreer.com.

The post Get prepared for Advocacy Day 2023 with Advocacy 101! appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

If you missed Advocacy Day, watch the full video below.

Note: We apologize that closed captioning was not used during this call. If you would like a copy of our Advocacy Day script please email sue@oregonculture.org.

Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici speaking on Advocacy Day 2021.

Words that rang true on Advocacy Day 2021.

“First responders and front-line workers have taken on the pandemic in heroic ways. The arts and culture sector are second responders and the facilitators of our healing from both the pandemic and inequities brought forward by the social justice movement.” – Dana Whitelaw, board secretary and Executive Director of the High Desert Museum. Quoted during the Zoom call.

“There is no other sector that can help mend our hearts and souls or help us begin to make sense of the world around us like the arts,” said Marquez.

Don’t forget, if you donate $100 or more to the Coalition in April and May you will receive an Advocacy Day reusable face mask. Every gift, no matter the size, helps the Coalition continue Advocating for Oregon’s arts, culture, history, heritage, and humanities. Become a new member or renew your gift today. We are grateful for your support. 

The post Thank you, Advocates. appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.

“Remember, it’s the stories that really help us make the case, so keep them coming,” said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. Our board of directors met with the Congresswoman to talk about the importance of arts education in our state, about what’s happening in the cultural sector right now, and finally about federal and local issues the Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon is urging policymakers to support, including our request to earmark Cultural Resources Economic Funds (CREF) for capital construction projects, among other priorities. 

“I can’t imagine what our communities would be without your cultural organizations,” said the Congresswoman. “There would be a tremendous void. Arts keep us going, arts heal us, and connect us.” Bonamici shared exciting news on the upcoming rollout of the Arts Education for All Act. More details to come.

We are thankful for Congresswoman Bonamici and her staffers (and those who attended our call today, Al Bannan and Andrew Dunn) and for the work around CARES Act dollars that contributed to the highest state support of arts and culture in the country. 

Note: If your organization is having challenges with SBA, please reach out to the Congresswoman’s office at Business_Assistance@mail.house.gov. 

Thank you to our incredible board of directors for speaking and to CACO staffer, Jamie Painter for organizing the meeting.

The post Encouraging words from Congresswoman Bonamici appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.