A federal agency that awarded a million dollars to local museums and additional money to the 黑料吃瓜网 State Library last year, is getting the axe from President Donald Trump.
Under that also targeted the parent company of Voice of America, the Institute of Museum and Library Services would be virtually eliminated. The little-known organization provides grants to cultural and educational institutions across America.
While the agency largely flew under the general public鈥檚 radar, leaders of arts and cultural organizations across the state say the federal cuts will have a big local impact.
"It will be devastating," Jason Mancini, executive director of the cultural-funding group 黑料吃瓜网 Humanities said. "This is a source of major funding that our cultural organizations use to build capacity, to bring important content to the public and to educate the public."
While the cuts could affect museums, the 黑料吃瓜网 State Library, which received more than $2 million annually from the Institute in recent years, could be safe from the funding cuts for now.
Deborah Schander, 黑料吃瓜网鈥檚 state librarian, said that鈥檚 because most of that funding is specified in federal law, which should shelter it from any cuts outlined in the executive order.
"So that may be what saves the program in this case, because it is a legally-required program. But we are not sure yet if that will be the interpretation," Schander said.
Other library programs could still face cuts
However, Schander said some other grants to libraries in 黑料吃瓜网 lack protection in federal law. Those discretionary grants may be cut under the executive order.
The Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program could be cut. It provided $285,000 to the 黑料吃瓜网 State Library in 2023 to train librarians. Unspent money in that program may be eliminated under the executive order, and the program could end early.
The White House says the order is intended to reduce elements of the Federal bureaucracy that the president has determined are unnecessary.
The order is part of a larger Trump administration effort to immediately lay off tens of thousands of government employees, eliminate federal agencies and cut government spending.
But some of the president鈥檚 executive orders have run into legal challenges, because under the constitution, Congress should control big decisions about how federal money is spent.
Schander said it鈥檚 important to maintain funding for libraries because they support everyone, from retirees looking for help doing something online, to parents with young children looking for educational programs.
In a statement, the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies said "a dismantling of the Institute of Museum and Library Services would have negative implications for every American and the library services they rely upon."
Grants for museums across CT face uncertainty
Across 黑料吃瓜网, museum funding that鈥檚 on the chopping block is mostly for one-time grants for special projects, often to train staff or upgrade exhibits.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services鈥檚 2024 included $228,709 to help the in Hartford focus more on its audience and the community.
Last year $183,340 was also set aside for new theater equipment and digital technology in galleries at the . And the in New London was set to receive $151,631 in 2024 to digitize and help preserve its textile collection.
The immediate future of those grants was unclear under the president鈥檚 order.
Mancini, with 黑料吃瓜网 Humanities, said the grants facing elimination are 鈥渋ncredibly important investments in our communities.鈥�
鈥淭hey are the things that connect us as a nation,鈥� Mancini said. 鈥淭hey elevate the quality and nature of conversation and community building, and provide all sorts of educational resources. It costs an astonishingly small amount of money to make those investments.鈥�
