ARTS IMPACT SURVEY 2.0: LET US KNOW IF YOU LOST NEA, NEH, IMLS, OR CPB FUNDING IN 2025
Complete the federal impact survey by Tuesday, February 17th at 5 PM
In 2025, the Trump Administration took a series of actions to disrupt or eliminate major sources of federal funding for the nation’s arts and cultural sector.
In March, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) placed approximately 80% of staff at the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) on administrative leave and terminated thousands of individual grants. On March 14th, they issued an Executive Order to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the only federal agency dedicated to funding both institutions.
The Trump Administration began canceling National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) grants in May and proposed eliminating the NEA, NEH, and other federal agencies that support arts and culture in their FY2026 budget proposal. Thanks to a large mobilization of advocates led by Americans for the Arts, the Administration’s proposed cuts to the NEA and NEH were stalled by the U.S. House of Representatives when they passed their FY26 minibus appropriations package with overwhelming bipartisan support for both agencies in early January 2026.
On January 5, 2026, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a private agency that has steered federal funding to PBS, NPR, and hundreds of public television and radio stations across the country since 1967, voted to dissolve the organization after losing all federal support through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
We have seen some victories to restore public support in the courts: in August, a federal judge ruled that the government's abrupt elimination of Congressionally-approved humanities grants was "unlawful," while 21 states brought a lawsuit against President Trump over IMLS cuts and they were successful in reinstating those grants in November.
WE NEED YOUR HELP - COMPLETE THE 2.0 FEDERAL IMPACT SURVEY
In Spring 2025, MASSCreative conducted a federal impact survey with other New England arts advocacy organizations to hear directly from you about how lost federal funding is impacting your organization’s operations, budget, staffing, and programming. We used this data in testimony at a Massachusetts House oversight hearing and in making the case to legislators that public funding for arts, culture, and creativity is essential.
MASSCreative is partnering on another federal impact survey with Arts4NH, CT Arts Alliance, Cultural Alliance of Maine, New England Foundation for the Arts, and the Vermont Arts Council/Vermont Creative Network to learn how federal funding cuts between January 1st to December 31st, 2025 impacted your organization and the communities that you serve.
If your organization is based in New England and your NEA, NEH, IMLS, or CPB grant was terminated or rescinded in 2025, please complete our survey before Tuesday, February 17th at 5 PM.
The survey takes between 10 - 15 minutes to complete. Help us document and tell these stories so they aren’t lost or forgotten.
TAKE THE SURVEY:
READ MORE:
Sweeping cuts hit NEA after Trump administration calls to eliminate the agency (NPR)
NEA’s New Grant Rules Imperil Funding for Arts Programs in Underserved Communities (artnet)
Trump Aims to Eliminate NEH and NEA in New 2026 Budget Proposal (ARTnews)
Corporation for Public Broadcasting votes itself out of existence (AP News)
ALA welcomes reinstatement of all federal IMLS grants to libraries (American Library Association)
