Palm Beach County arts and culture organizations are scrambling to fill empty spaces in their coffers for the coming year after Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this month vetoed $32 million in grants from the state budget — essentially the entirety of Florida's funding for the arts.
In a move decried by arts supporters as unprecedented, disappointing and a blow to the economy, DeSantis drew red lines through the pair of arts grant programs that would have provided up to $3.1 million for local organizations — some of which are still recovering financially from the COVID-19 pandemic — for what arts supporters said is the first time in the grants' history.
"It was quite a blow," said Diane Quinn, chief executive of the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach. When state lawmakers sent a budget earlier this year to DeSantis for approval, they included the arts funding — prompting groups to factor that money into their proposed budgets, some of which take effect July 1.
"When you start to budget, knowing that those dollars have been approved and then getting a last-minute veto, I think it's hurtful and damaging for many organizations," she said.
The governor’s office has not commented on the vetoes, and an email to DeSantis’ media office was not returned.
In a June 12 news release announcing the final budget signing, DeSantis touted the state’s strong fiscal position and a veto package that totaled almost $1 billion.
“This budget delivers historic support for education, infrastructure, and conservation, yet spends less than the year before and includes major tax relief,” he said. “We have paid down 36% of the state’s entire tax-supported debt over the course of my term, and the state maintains a AAA credit rating, one of the lowest tax burdens in America, and more than $17 billion in reserve.”
DeSantis' lack of comment about the vetoes has left organizations wondering: Why cut the entire grant programs, and not a portion, as the state has done in past years? Some local leaders say it's an example of election-year politics.
"Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' veto eliminating funding for arts and culture nonprofits across Florida is short-sighted. In a time of dangerous division and political tension, the arts unify people and remind us of our shared humanity,” Democratic Congresswoman Lois Frankel, whose district includes all of Palm Beach and most of central and southern Palm Beach County, said in a news release. “And, importantly, they are a major driver of our economy — attracting tourists, creating jobs and boosting children’s learning."
What was vetoed?
The two grant programs DeSantis vetoed historically have funded arts and culture in the state.
The culture and museum grant program, also called the general support program, this year would have dedicated $26 million to Florida groups to pay for costs that could include operations, programming, staff, education and more.
The cultural facilities grant program included a little more than $6 million for capital improvements and construction on arts and culture structures.
In total, they would have provided about $32 million statewide, of which $3.1 million would have come to Palm Beach County for 51 organizations. Each award is a matching grant, meaning that for every dollar the state dedicates to the grant, the organization has to put forth the same amount.
Depending on their budget size, organizations can apply for up to $150,000 through the culture and museum grant program, and up to $500,000 through the cultural facilities program. This can be difficult for some organizations, but it also can effectively double a smaller group’s budget, grant experts said.
Each year, organizations submit their applications to the Florida Division of Arts and Culture, and a peer-review panel then ranks the grant requests and recommends funding based on those rankings. Those recommendations are sent to state lawmakers, who send a draft budget to the governor with their own recommendation for what percentage of the grant programs should be approved.
The $26 million amounts to about 48% of what was requested by arts organizations and recommended by the Division of Arts and Culture for the coming year's budget. The $6 million for the cultural facilities grant would have covered the costs of the top 15 ranked applicants in that program, which included $500,000 for the Adolph & Rose Levis Jewish Community Center west of Boca Raton.
What is the economic impact of the vetoes?
Arts supporters moved quickly to criticize the vetoes, while also issuing calls for donations to quickly help fill spaces in budgets that groups had thought would be filled with grant money.
"We join cultural organizations across the state in being disappointed at the total lack of state funding for 2024-2025, especially when the arts are such a draw for tourist dollars," said Ghislain d’Humières, director and chief executive at the Norton Museum of Art, noting that the Norton through the years has used the money for pay for curatorial and educational programs.
"It is unfortunate that the governor may not have considered the impact this action will have on accessibility to the arts," d’Humières said. "We welcome having a dialogue with him about that in the near future and remain committed to our core value of accessibility, regardless of state funding."
Local arts leaders said the lowest year of grant funding in recent memory came in 2018-19 when Florida dedicated only $2.6 million for the programs "due to a particularly tough legislative session timed with the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School," according to the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County.
"The state's reduction in public funding is very disappointing and presents a challenge for us in the upcoming fiscal year," Ahmad Mayes, executive director of the Chamber Music Society of Palm Beach, said. The society is optimistic about its financial health but working on a plan to minimize the effects of the veto, he added.
"Our goal is to emerge as a stronger organization," Mayes said.
Last year's state budget included about $40 million for the two grant programs, records show. The general support program applicants received about 67% of the total of their grant requests.
"This puts us at the bottom of the list of 50 states in terms of funding for the arts," said Dave Lawrence, president and chief executive of the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County. "So, not a good statement for Florida to be making right now."
He pointed to a study done through Americans for the Arts, the Cultural Council's parent organization, which this past December found that the arts have an annual $335 million economic impact in Palm Beach County.
"That translates to over 1,400 full-time equivalent jobs, and an audience of more than 4 million people attend arts events and festivals and arts activities here in Palm Beach County ever single year," Lawrence said.
While the $3.1 million in grants may not seem like a lot of money, he said that a report from the Florida Cultural Alliance found that every dollar spent on the arts generates $9 of economic activity.
"Arts organizations know how to stretch a penny and to make it work, nine-fold," Lawrence said. "So that could really translate into a $27 million impact to the bottom line of cultural organizations this year."
Additionally, the Americans for the Arts study found that arts and culture organizations and their audiences spend $5.7 billion a year in Florida, with more than 91,000 jobs related to the industry.
Some groups will have to cut programs, staff or events, Lawrence said, adding that because the news is so fresh, it's still too early to know exactly how groups will respond. "As is often the case in this type of situation, the smaller the organization, the bigger the impact," Lawrence said.
Arts and culture are essential amenities for people moving and traveling to the Sunshine State, said Jill Brown, chief executive of Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach.
"Not only do they ask about the neighborhoods or the schools, but they say, 'What cultural entities do you have?'" Brown said of those considering a move to Florida.
Still, she acknowledged that the arts are "always at the forefront" for cuts when it comes to government budgets. "We always have to put our words out there and express how valuable and important it is, because it's not just an entertainment factor, it's not just for people to enjoy as an extracurricular activity," Brown said.
The benefits extend into the economy, mental health and community, she said. "The arts and culture really do drive tourism and increase a great deal of revenue throughout our state," Brown said. "I'm hoping that because of this veto, they'll see the impact that the arts have and maybe they'll reconsider going forward."
DeSantis' veto "shows how little recognition there is for the value that we offer to our community, not only through inspiring them and enriching their lives, but also economically," said Sue Ellen Beryl, managing director of Palm Beach Dramaworks.
With a theater on Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach, people who come to a Dramaworks performance also spend money on parking and dining, she said. "It's kind of short-sighted, not to recognize the value that we bring to the table, and the jobs that we create and the supplies that we buy," Beryl said. "To me, that's the most hurtful thing about this."
Arts and culture groups told Palm Beach Daily News said that while the award amount has varied over the years, they never expected it to be vetoed completely.
"We feel in the arts here, we're always having to defend that this is not a luxury item, and that's sometimes how we're made to feel," Beryl said. "You can look at it even in the schools. That's the first thing to cut, is the arts program, because they don't recognize the value in terms of enriching people's lives and helping kids think differently and better and faster.
"It's just mind-boggling to me," she said.
For local municipalities on the list, including Royal Palm Beach and Wellington, the cuts may not be as much of an immediate blow because their budgets do not take effect until Oct. 1, giving them more time to adapt if needed, experts said.
Wellington officials have applied successfully for the grants in the past, said Deputy Village Manager Tanya Quickel.
But the village does not plan its budget to expect any of the grants that its staff applies for, she added. Wellington previously used the grant money to pay for programming at its amphitheater, she said.
“We will not be cutting any programs because we did not get it,” Quickel said.
Groups still recovering from COVID-19
The vetoes were particularly painful for an industry still reeling from the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Americans for the Arts described the pandemic's effects on the arts and culture industry as "devastating."
Many arts venues and organizations just experienced their first full season operating at a capacity close to what they saw before the pandemic.
According to the National Endowment for the Arts, the U.S. arts economy shrank at nearly twice the rate of the economy as a whole between 2019 and 2020, making it one of the industries hardest-hit by the virus, joining oil drilling and exploration and air transportation.
A Cultural Council survey of its constituent organizations between March and August of 2020 found that 53% of those who responded to the survey had lost nearly 900,000 attendees, canceled or delayed more than 1,600 events and furloughed 150 full-time and 443 part-time employees.
"If the pandemic taught us anything, it was the fragility of the arts and cultural sector," Lawrence said. "It was the hardest hit and has been the slowest to recover."
The vetoes could feel for some groups like having the rug pulled out from underneath their feet, just as they were getting their balance back, he said. With the grants completely gone: "That is really going to put the organizations at a severe disadvantage," Lawrence said.
The Kravis Center has been fortunate to receive support and attendance there is back to pre-pandemic levels, CEO Quinn said. "But I know for a fact that other organizations have not been as fortunate," she added. "Momentum is incredibly important."
While Dramaworks has received support from "very loyal patrons," the organization remains at 70% of its pre-pandemic ticket sales, Beryl said.
"It's still work," she said. "We're crawling back to where we need to be, to serve the community."
For organizations that already have to work hard to stretch a dollar, the effects of the pandemic were a big blow, Armory's Brown noted.
"People have been real, looking at their organizations to try to figure out, how do we make change?" she said. "Because they are a business, and we just have a really great product to offer people, but we have to look at that.
"If nothing more, we're fighters," Brown said.
Grant experts and lobbyists who work with organizations to pursue state grants said the vetoes were unprecedented.
Ryan Ruskay, president of RMPK Funding in Jupiter, primarily works with municipalities to secure state grants. He said that in his nearly two decades of experience, he hasn’t seen a complete veto of these grant programs.
“When it happens every year at some level, it becomes part of your budget,” he said of the many groups that have come to rely on the grants.
The grants for next year’s budget already have been submitted, and local leaders remain optimistic that money will be restored for the grant programs. Until then, they said, supporters who have heard about the governor's vetoes are beginning to step forward to help.
“We have very loyal patrons that want us here and support us financially," Dramaworks' Beryl said.
Which Palm Beach County organizations did not receive grants?
These 51 Palm Beach County organizations would have received a range of grant amounts totaling about $3.1 million from the two grant programs that were vetoed by DeSantis:
- Adolph & Rose Levis Jewish Community Center
- Aequalis Inc. (The Core Ensemble)
- Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens
- The Armory Art Center.
- Ballet Palm Beach
- Benzaiten Center for Creative Arts
- Boca Ballet Theatre Company
- Boca Raton Historical Society
- Boca Raton Museum of Art
- Boca Raton Philharmonic Symphonia
- Boynton Cultural Centre
- Busch Wildlife Sanctuary
- Center for Creative Education
- Centre for the Arts at Mizner Park
- The Chamber Music Society of Palm Beach
- City of Riviera Beach
- Cox Science Center and Aquarium
- Creative City Collaborative of Delray Beach (Arts Garage)
- Cultural Council for Palm Beach Count
- Digital Vibez
- District Board of Trustees of Palm Beach State College
- Florida Atlantic University
- Friends of Mounts Botanical Garden
- The Henry Morrison Flagler Museum
- Historical Society of Palm Beach County
- Lake Worth Cultural Renaissance Foundation
- The Lake Worth Playhouse
- Lighthouse ArtCenter
- Loggerhead Marinelife Cetner
- Loxahatchee River Historical Society
- Lynn Conservatory of Music
- Maltz Jupiter Theatre
- The Masterworks Chorus of the Palm Beaches
- Memory Trees Corporation
- Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens
- Norton Museum of Art
- Palm Beach Dramaworks,
- Palm Beach Opera
- Palm Beach Shakespeare Festival
- The Palm Beach Symphony Society
- Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
- Resource Depot
- School of the Arts Foundation
- Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America
- Spady Cultural Heritage Museum
- Sunfest of Palm Beach County
- Village of Royal Palm Beach
- Village of Wellington
- Young Singers of the Palm Beaches
- The Zoological Society of the Palm Beaches
