At a May 14 hearing of the Joint Committee on the Arts, advocates pressed lawmakers to back a combined $90 million in arts funding, including $40 million for the performing arts equitable payroll fund and $50 million for the California Arts Council.
The hearing centered on California’s Creative Economy Strategic Plan, with speakers saying the effort, established under AB 127 in 2023-24, is moving from planning into community engagement, implementation design and eventual evaluation. The plan is being guided by the California Arts Council and an interagency workgroup, and the Institute for the Future was selected through a competitive bid to help develop it.
Public testimony also highlighted workforce and training efforts already underway, including a digital badging certification protocol, the Entertainment Equity Alliance and a registered apprenticeship network supported by a $3.5 million award to Brick from the California Workforce Development Board. Arts for LA said it has launched a creative employer toolkit focused on recruitment, hiring and equitable employment practices.
The hearing record shows speakers urging support for the two funding requests and describing the plan as entering implementation, but the available material does not show a formal committee endorsement or any introduced budget language.
