L.V. Arts Council Asks Supporters to Call Pa. Lawmakers

The leader of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council wants local legislators to hear supporters sing – or at least make a phone call – in favor of state funding by Monday.

Lawmakers in Harrisburg are debating the state budget, due by July 1. A budget proposal in the state House would slash funding for the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts by 70 percent, from $8.2 million to $2.5 million. Arts organizations in the Lehigh Valley would lose about $350,000 in state support next year if the proposal passes as it now stands.

That does not sit well with Randall Forte, executive director of the Lehigh Valley Arts Council.

“That's a lot of money to the region,” Forte said, adding that he was “sort of taken aback” when he first heard of the proposed cuts to state arts funding, which would impact 31 arts organizations in the Lehigh Valley.

One reason Forte was surprised: The proposed cuts stem from the House Appropriations Committee, rather than Gov. Tom Corbett, who campaigned on a platform of extreme fiscal discipline. Corbett's original budget proposal did not slash funding to the state Arts Council, Forte noted.

“I would have assumed the legislature would honor the governor's request,” he said.

Now Forte wants Lehigh Valley arts lovers to let their state lawmakers know how they feel about the proposed cuts---preferably before the House goes back into session on Monday.

“What we want people to do is to contact their local legislators,” he said this week, echoing sentiments from an email blast he sent to a large mailing list. “Now is the time for constituents to go to their legislator's local office” and share their opinion on the proposed funding cuts, he added.

The House proposal would tighten belts in arts groups throughout the Lehigh Valley. ArtsQuest---the Bethlehem-based non-profit that organizes Musikest, among other events---would be the biggest loser, at a reduction of about $88,000, Forte said.

Not just arts lovers but also area business owners should be concerned over the proposed cuts, according to Forte. Fewer arts events, drawing fewer patrons, means fewer customers for surrounding businesses, he said.

“The impact will be felt on businesses on the local and state level,” he said. Economic impact studies consistently show that public funding for the arts generates both tax revenue and increased profits for private business, Forte noted. He cited the example of a once-successful  local theater that went out of business in the late 1990s; soon after, surrounding restaurants also closed their doors, he said.

Still, the arts cannot expect handouts during tough economic times, Forte said.

“I don't think the arts should consider itself exempt from the sacrifices in the economy,” he said. “We are not asking the taxpayers to fund everything ... but this (proposal) is extreme.”

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