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President Obama's FY 2011 budget, released Monday, February 1, recommends approximately $2 million in funding cuts to the state humanities councils and an overall cut of $6 million to the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), maintaining the funding level for NEH included in the President's FY 2010 request but reversing the increase approved by Congress in FY 2010. The proposed budget allocates $38.2 million to the state councils and $161.3 million to the NEH.
Esther Mackintosh, president of the Federation of State Humanities Councils, said Thursday "We are disappointed that the increases in funding we worked so hard to gain in last year's appropriations process are not reflected in the President's FY 2011 budget request. The support provided by state humanities councils is a lifeline for struggling community organizations and institutions."
These proposed cuts to federal funding come in addition to declines in state and private funding. Mackintosh notes that "the need is greater than ever for humanities council programs that help citizens make sense of the difficult issues we face, provide enrichment for teachers, and strengthen family ties and reading skills." The Federation of State Humanities Councils will request that Congress increase the funding recommended in the President's budget in order to better meet the growing needs for humanities programming.
State humanities councils were created by Congress in the early 1970s and receive an annual congressional appropriation through the National Endowment for the Humanities. The state humanities councils are independent, nonprofit organizations which support grassroots humanities programs and community-based activities in each state and US territory. To learn more about your state humanities council, please visit www.statehumanities.org.