Arts Blog

Trump’s Impact on the Arts: A Running List of Updates

UPDATE—Thursday, January 30 at 1:30 a.m.

The Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council is closely monitoring the developing situation around the January 27th White House Office of Management and Budget memo ordering a freeze on all federal agency grants and loans. As of January 29, 2025, the memo has been rescinded by the White House, but a looming threat on federal funding sources crucial for individuals and organizations of the arts and culture sector remains. 

 

Disruptions to federal funding sources could have numerous impacts on the arts and culture sector. Between 2020 and 2024, the National Endowment for the Arts distributed $32.6 million to Pennsylvania organizations to fund creative projects, new artwork, arts research, and more. $3.3 million of these funds were distributed within 50 miles of Pittsburgh alone. In addition, data from our 2024 Artist Community Survey indicates that about 36% of local artists utilize at least one publicly funded program to meet their basic needs. 

 

For examples of how this is concerning our arts and culture community, we recommend reading WESA's latest report, Pittsburgh arts leaders grapple with political threats.

 

As we await additional updates, we encourage you to proactively reach out to your representatives and share your support for federal arts and culture funding. Leaders of organizations can also fill out this survey about your federal funding sources to help our team quickly pivot into action to protect funds from any future threat. 

 

 

ORIGINAL POST—Wednesday, January 22

Within his first 24 hours in office, President Trump rescinded many of former President Biden’s previous executive orders. Among these was Executive Order 14084 – Promoting the Arts, the Humanities, and Museum and Library Services. 

At the time of its authorization by President Biden in September 2022, EO 14084 recognized arts, culture, and humanities as being vital to the “well-being, health, vitality, and democracy of our Nation.” It paved the way for federal agencies to be more actively involved in supporting creative and cultural institutions, ensuring their benefits are accessible to everyone, including underserved and underrepresented communities. It also called for increased funding and support for museums, libraries, and arts initiatives, ensuring they have the resources to serve their communities effectively.  

 

Federal support of arts and culture is essential to ensuring these benefits reach all Americans and their communities.

EO 14084 also re-established the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, a body responsible for advising the president on cultural policy issues. President Trump’s decision to rescind this order also dismantles this committee for a second time. The first dissolution of the group occurred after its members resigned in protest over President Trump’s reaction to the deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. Before this, the committee, established in 1982, had existed under both Democratic and Republican administrations. 

 

The Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council affirms that our nation’s creative and cultural assets are vital to our education, economic growth, and social cohesion. As our CEO Patrick Fisher stressed in the post-election statement we published in November, the arts must be protected. Federal support of arts and culture is essential to ensuring these benefits reach all Americans and their communities. While it is still unclear how President Trump’s decision to rescind Executive Order 14084 will impact the arts nationally and locally, we will continue to monitor the impact of this action and share opportunities to take action as they arise. 

Category

Cultural Policy