FY24 House Budget Updates
This week, the House concluded their FY24 budget debates by approving a $56.2B spending package to meet the needs of residents throughout the Commonwealth. The final House Budget is $120M more than Gov. Healey’s FY24 proposal, includes $25M for the Mass Cultural Council line item (0640-0300), and appropriates $895K in the form of 16 earmarks for various arts and culture organizations.
This commitment from the House also reflects an 11% increase to the Mass Cultural Council's existing operating budget. New data released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis last month shows that the Massachusetts creative sector was a $27.2B industry in 2021, representing 4.2% of the Commonwealth’s GDP and 135,181 jobs statewide.
We know that our creative sector is critical to the health and resiliency of the Massachusetts economy. Thank you for making your voices heard and encouraging Gov. Healey and House leadership to invest $25M in the Mass Cultural Council line item!
THANK YOU HOUSE LEADERSHIP!
We appreciate Speaker Mariano, Chair Michlewitz, and Chair Domb for their leadership in supporting $25M for the Mass Cultural Council in the FY24 House Budget. Thanks to their dedication to strengthening the creative sector, we are closer to achieving our long-term objective of securing $5 per capita in the state budget.
See the letter advocates sent thanking the House for their commitment to #CreativeMA
IN YOUR COMMUNITIES
In addition to fighting for public investments statewide, these representatives secured earmarks to support more creativity in their districts:
$20K for repairs to the Number 6 Schoolhouse in Leominster - Rep. Natalie Higgins
$50K for updates to the Frances Drake house in Leominster - Rep. Natalie Higgins
$75K for renovations to the Forbes House Museum in Milton - Rep. Bill Driscoll
$150K for the Franklin Performing Arts Company - Rep. Jeffrey Roy
$100K for the Springfield Symphony Orchestra - Rep. Brian Ashe
$50K for Beyond Walls for a public art installation project in Haverhill - Rep. Andy Vargas
$25K for the children’s space at MASS MoCA in North Adams - Rep. John Barrett III
$25K for Cogswell Art Space in Haverhill - Rep. Ryan Hamilton
$25K for Three Saints, Inc. in Lawrence - Rep. Estela Reyes
$25K for an artist community assistance program administered by Allston Village main streets -
Rep. Kevin Honan
$75K to Amplify POC Cape Cod - Rep. Kipp Diggs
$50K for Barnstable to hire for the city’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives - Rep. Kipp Diggs
$50K for downtown wayfinding improvements in Hudson - Rep. Kate Hogan
$50K for the Lowell Southeast Asian Water Festival - Rep. Rady Mom
$25K for the Fort Point arts community - Rep. David Biele
$100K for the Boston Ballet - Rep. Mindy Domb
Thank you for supporting the creative sector in your communities!
WHAT’S NEXT?
The Senate Budget process will kick off in mid-May and we’re offering different resources to help you stay up to date with what’s happening. You can also use our Inside the State Budgeting Process blog to track budget timeline.
On Friday, May 4th at 9:30 am, we’re hosting our May Open House. These monthly open houses are for you to chat with Team MASSCreative about what’s going on in your communities, share your advocacy questions, organizing ideas, and sector concerns. Register here to attend.
We’re also holding our next Policy & Action Update Webinar on Friday, May 12th at 9:30 am. This webinar will be all about debriefing the House Budget, discussing what’s in the Senate Ways and Means Budget, and where to direct your advocacy. Register here to attend the May Policy & Action Update Webinar.
ONWARD!
It’s been a great week for the Massachusetts creative sector! We have a lot to celebrate and a lot more to look forward to as we advocate for the same #CreativeMA investments in the Senate Budget!
