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.

The bill allocates a total of $11.8 million for arts and culture, with $5.9 million going to 13 out of 14 CREF projects. These projects are crucial for the resilience and sustainability of Oregon’s arts and culture organizations:

• Oregon Film Museum (Astoria)
• Black United Fund (Portland)
• Oregon Caves (Cave Junction)
• Columbia County Museum (St. Helens)
• Josephine Community Library Foundation (Grants Pass)
• Southern Oregon Historical Society (Medford)
• PAMCUT (Portland)
• Very Little Theatre (Eugene)
• Portland Institute for Contemporary Art
• Rainier Historical Society
• Eco-Earth Globe (Salem)
• Portland Playhouse
• Painted Sky Center for Arts (John Day)

As this Oregonian article explains, the only CREF project not approved for funding is the High Desert Museum in Bend. Dana Whitelaw, executive director and a CACO board member, expressed disappointment. “It’s a total surprise. We were assured that legislative leadership was supportive of all of the projects. It’s a huge loss for central Oregon.”

The Legislature also approved our request for $5.9 million in resiliency funding for the state’s major arts organizations, including the High Desert Museum, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Oregon Symphony, Portland Art Museum, Portland Center Stage, and Portland Opera.

While this funding is a step in the right direction, unfortunately our request for $13.5 million to fund a grant program for smaller organizations did not get approved. Advocates had emphasized the need for equitable distribution of resiliency funding to prevent a repeat of the previous session’s shortcomings

“We are grateful to Rep. Rob Nosse for his foresight and continued commitment to the cultural sector. He has tirelessly championed arts and culture funding, and this bill could never have happened without his advocacy.”
–J.S. May, CACO Board President

Ongoing work is needed to ensure that all arts and culture organizations receive the support they need to thrive.

Some of our arts & culture champions are moving on, so we’ll need to identify new champions in the Ways and Means Committee and Senate and House leadership.

Today, we celebrate. Senate Bill 5701 represents a significant win for Oregon’s arts and culture sector, providing much-needed support.

Tomorrow, we continue the work to ensure that all organizations, especially smaller nonprofits, receive the support they need to recover and thrive.

Thank you for your ongoing support!

CACO Board

The post Artistic triumph: Oregon Legislature backs arts & culture 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.

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Join us for Advocacy Day on April 23rd, because we need arts and culture in Oregon. 

WHERE | Willamette Heritage Center (1313 Mill Street SE, Salem, Oregon 97301), and the Oregon State Capitol (900 Court St NE, Salem, OR 97301) 
WHEN | Tuesday, April 23^rd, 2019. Check in at 8:30 a.m. Several events, legislative meetings, and cultural performances until 5:00 p.m.  Participants must register below. There is a suggested $25 event donation, which would include lunch, parking, and materials ($15 without lunch).  A scholarship option is also available to some, please email Events Manager Laurie Garrett at laurie@oregonculture.org to inquire. Registrants can make their payment through PayPal’s guest checkout (below) or pay at the door if needed. 

Supporting cultural programs, events, and organizations in our state improves education, fuels our statewide economy, bridges urban-rural gaps, opens our minds, and keeps us connected and healthy.  That’s why we need YOUR voice on our most important day of the year. Help protect arts, culture, and heritage in Oregon by attending the Cultural Advocacy Coalition’s Advocacy Day event on Tuesday, April 23rd. Tell us and your Oregon legislators why arts and culture are good for you and your community. 

Our Advocacy Day event will give guests a chance to meet staff from other cultural organizations, as well as receive advocacy training from experienced professionals, see cultural performances, and help you petition elected officials to include arts, culture, and heritage in policy and budgeting priorities. 

Following lunch, the afternoon will be spent at the Oregon State Capitol meeting with legislators. This is a rare opportunity to translate your voice into real action. Together, we will communicate how the Oregon State Legislature can better support arts and culture, and why the Cultural Tax Credit, which is set to expire in 2019, is critical to Oregonians. The tax credit helps fund cultural events, activities, awareness, and access across the state reaching from the coast to urban centers and to the high desert. Funds from the tax credit have supported more than 1,400 arts, heritage, and humanities nonprofits in Oregon. Join us on Tuesday, April 23rd and show how arts and culture transcends your life as an Oregonian. Register for Advocacy Day below.

Download or print the Arts & Culture Advocacy Day Event Packet.   

Can’t join in person? Support arts & culture in Oregon by sharing and following us on social media and consider becoming a member of the Cultural Advocacy Coalition. Your gift helps us continue advocating for policies and funding that will create a thriving environment for arts, culture, and heritage across Oregon. The Cultural Advocacy Coalition is the only statewide advocacy organization lobbying Salem on behalf of Oregon’s arts and culture. Become a member today. 

DONATE

The post Arts & Culture Advocacy Day 2019 appeared first on Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon.