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This week the Arizona Commission on the Arts reached out via e-mail to share some very unfortunate news with the community. On Saturday, March 7, the Arizona State Legislature passed the budget for the 2016 fiscal year, a budget that sadly did not include the usual $1 million in funds that had previously been appropriated to the Commission on the Arts in the two consecutive fiscal years prior.
See also: Beatrice Moore on the State of the Arts in Metro Phoenix
In an e-mail statement, Commission on the Arts executive director Robert C. Booker says that the recent budget cut will be “sorely felt,” noting that programs will be eliminated and grants will be minimized.
Jackalope Ranch reached out to the Arizona Commission on the Arts and the affiliated network Arizona Citizens for the Arts to find out more about how the discontinued funding would affect future programs.
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Commission on the Arts communications and research director Steve Wilcox responded on Tuesday, March 10, by saying that “it is simply too soon for us to speak too specifically on the matter.”
Jackalope Ranch will provided further details on this subject as they become available. For more information on the Arizona Commission on the Arts, visit www.azarts.gov.
