Jay Dick
Here we go again…
On Friday, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley vetoed the South Carolina Arts Commission’s budget. This is the third year in a row for such a veto, two by Governor Haley and one by former Governor Sanford. It should be noted that prior to Governor Sanford’s veto, he systematically cut the Commission’s budget over the seven years leading up to the veto during his last year in office.
To complicate matters, the legislature failed to submit a budget to the Governor until after the start of the new fiscal year that began on July 1. The Commission, under the veto, has no budget and thus, has had to shut down pending the legislature voting to override the veto on July 17 (House) and 18 (Senate).
Governor Haley issued 81 vetoes totaling $67.5 million for everything from a slight pay raise for teachers to a North Myrtle Beach museum, the preservation of African-American history sites in Charleston, a commuter mass transit service between Camden and Columbia, prescription drugs for AIDS patients, and a nonprofit that serves sexual assault victims.
But, it was only the Arts Commission and the Sea Grant Consortium that were totally eliminated—a move that puts 38 state employee’s jobs in limbo.
House Speaker Bobby Harrell is calling legislators back July 17 to consider overrides. He had planned to wait until mid-September, but Harrell said the two agencies’ predicament, as well as the money for teacher raises, should be addressed sooner. The Senate is coming back on July 18.
Governor Haley’s reasoning for her veto of the Arts Commission is that she would rather let taxpayers decide what charities they want to support. She said it’s not a government function.
The Arts Commission is a charity?!
I am continually amazed at the ignorance of some of our elected officials who, no matter what information/research you give them demonstrating how arts and culture greatly contribute to the economy, provide millions of jobs, and generate more money for the local, state, and federal tax receipts than are appropriated, prefer to ignore it and stick their proverbial heads in the sand.
I am hopeful that wiser heads prevail and the legislature will override the veto. Last year, the House voted by a margin of 105–8 to override the veto and the Senate 32–6. I watched some of the speeches that members of the House gave on the floor in support of the Arts Commission in which they showed better understanding that the arts are not charity, but are an economic engine. It was interesting that no legislature spoke in favor of the veto.
That said, as usual, Betty Plumb of the South Carolina Arts Alliance is in full battle mode and is working with the legislature to convince them to override the veto.
I would encourage you to follow the South Carolina Arts Alliance on Facebook and Twitter to receive updates and to take action. (You are also welcome to follow me on Twitter as well.)
As July 17 and 18 approach, watch for calls to action and when you get them, please TAKE action! If we all work as a team, we will be successful!
Here’s a news report from a local TV station covering the issue:
Hi Jay,
We had the same problem with former Michigan Governor, Jennifer Granholm. She pretended to understand the economic impact of the arts and even made an attempt or two at pairing the arts with economic recovery with her “Cool Cities” program. I met with her early in her first year in the office, to talk about the future of arts funding in Michigan. It was obvious to me that she did not support state funding for the arts. When she discovered the strong voice the collective arts agencies throughout Michigan had, she pretended to support our efforts. However her legislative and budgeting actions proved otherwise. Her stance remained the same throughout her years as Governor of Michigan. Due to term limits, she was bold enough to try to eliminate the Michigan Council for Arts And Cultural Affairs while setting the budget for her last term in office. Fortunately, there were many legislators who came to our rescue and managed to save our State Arts Council. I am thankful for term limits and for the democratic process. Sometimes these are our only way to demonstrate that the arts are for everyone and accessibility is only secured when our collective tax dollars are used. Many Michigan folks crossed party lines to vote for our governor, Rick Snyder. Governor Snyder understands the importance of the arts for our society and has promised to restore funding to our State Arts Council. I have read about South Carolina and heard representatives from that great state at many conferences. They treasure arts and culture and they understand the benefits to their society including the spiritual, educational and economic impacts. They must now make their voice heard and if their governor does not listen, they must make their voice heard at the polls.
Once again we seem to be using a vague, politically safe language when talking about ” support for the Arts.” What do administrators and policy makers mean when they say they are advocating to supports the Arts? Michigan has an arts council that hasn’t provided and direct or real support for artists for years. Instead it provides funding for arts organizations and arts advocacy groups which is not the same as providing financial support for the people that actually produce the culture that we all say we value so much.
Here we go again. So far, we’re 3-0 against our own governors down here. They don’t seem to get it. Plenty of responses to this going up online locally. Luckily for us, our Legislators supported us last year, and supported us overwhelmingly this year (Arts Commission passed House 91-0). We’ve got our hands full, but we’re more driven than ever. Thanks for the coverage Jay!
[...] with the support of overwhelming majorities from their own party in 2010 and 2011. However, this year is a little different because the legislature did not pass a budget before the July 1 start of the fiscal year, meaning [...]
Months before he was actually elected, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback said pirvately to some state senators that he would eliminate the Kansas Arts Commission. He also expressed that other states would follow suit. No other states did, but Nikki Haley tried. This year, she has succeeded so far. It is clear that the extreme right-wing governors who are beholden to ALEC and the Kochs are trying to eliminate public for the arts. They have no understanding of — nor do they care — the incredible web of pubic and private funding that sustains (not always well) the arts in our country.
But Brownback did not prevail, it was a complete embarrassment to him as the public and the media have not let it go. The Kansas Arts Commission is gone, but this year it is being replaced with the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission, with a small amount of state dollars. Of course, we’ll see what happens. But I encourage South Carolineans to keep their advocacy going in every way they can and be loud about it. The truth is: state funding for the arts is vital. Our governements invest in all sorts of economic development and community development — the arts are just as crucial to the well-being of our communities as any other business.