GOAL: Your 2016-2017 Cultural and Museum grant fully funded, not partially funded.

STATUS: As of today, the House recommends $14,907,118 and the Senate recommends $19,400,000 for the 2016-2017 Cultural and Museum Grants. A total appropriation of $30,933,457 is needed under the Florida Department of State Division of Cultural Affairs' Cultural and Museum Grants-Funding Category (budget line item 3103).

WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW (please do not put this action off) to help secure full funding for your 2016-2017 Cultural and Museum Grant.

Action Step #1: Go here to easily and quickly send an already composed email to your senator and representative. Share with your colleagues and friends to also easily take action using this action step.

Action Step #2: Communicate with Florida's Legislative Leadership. Our quick system used in action step 1 above will not let us send hundreds of emails to Florida's Legislative Leadership. However, we've made sending these emails to the eight legislative leaders listed below easy for you. Just follow the simple directions below. It is leadership that will either make partial or full funding possible for the 2016-2017 Cultural and Museum Grants.

You each must send separate, not group, emails to all eight of the legislative leaders listed below: 4 in the Senate and 4 in the House.

Directions to send these 8 individual leaders separate emails from you and other arts and culture advocates:

a. Copy and paste one of the suggested subject box titles to use in your eight separate emails;
b. At the beginning of each email, type the name and title of the legislative leader you're sending the specific email to; For example, Dear Speaker Crisafulli or Chairman Latvala or Chairman Lee or Senate President Gardiner, etc.;
c. Copy and paste and edit if you want the suggested message below for each of the 8 separate emails you will send;
d. Sign your name, position and organization, if applicable, on each of the eight emails;
e. Copy and paste individually the email address listed next to the eight legislative leaders below and send to each of them separately. Please do not send as a group email.
f. If time permits, please call and leave a brief message with these leaders' staff about this request.

Suggested subject-box titles -- copy and paste one or create your own for each of the eight separate emails:

Please restore $30.9 million to Cultural and Museum Grants
Please fully restore budget line item 3103 so 413 grants receive their qualified grant amounts
413 Qualified Grants Depend Upon Your Leadership to Fully Fund Them

Suggested email to send to each of the 8 Florida Legislative Leaders listed below:

Dear        :

     Thank you for your leadership and support for the Florida Department of State Division of Cultural Affairs grants' programs; HOWEVER, I write to request your continued leadership to please restore the necessary $30,933,457 to honor and fully fund all 413 grant applicants at the grant levels they qualify for under the Cultural and Museum Grants-Funding Category (budget line item 3103), as leadership did for FY 2014-2015.

     The current appropriation recommendations for the Cultural and Museum Grants will only partially fund each of the 413 grant amounts they each specifically qualify for under the Cultural and Museum Grants Category. This state investment helps these 413 organizations leverage the millions in the necessary and required matching dollars from other private and public sources needed to sustain their operations and programs.

     Full investment means the preservation and creation of jobs; greater returns to local and state government treasuries; expanded access to more culturally diverse programs for residents, children, and tourists; greater impact on tourism; stronger student engagement and achievement; attraction and retention of new businesses; and many other benefits.

Thank you for your consideration of this request. I've also included below links to more detailed information about the Cultural and Museum Grants Category, along with other detailed information. If you need additional information, please let me know.

Your name, title, organization,address

Links to Additional Information:

A. Cultural and Museum Grants 2016-2017 Ranked List:
http://flca.net/images/10-25_CM_DCA_2016-2017_Ranked_List_CM.pdf

B. County-by-County Lists of All Qualified 2016-2017 DCA Ranked Lists by All Four DCA Funding Categories:
http://flca.net/images/DCA_2016-2017_C_by_C_List_11-23-15.pdf

C. 2016 Florida Legislative Platform for Arts and Culture:
http://flca.net/images/Revised_FINAL_2016_Platform_12-11-15.pdf

Contact Information for Legislative Leaders -- all 8 need to hear from you and other arts and culture advocates now:

SENATE LEADERSHIP:	Leadership Position:	E-mail Addresses:	Capitol Phone #:
Andy Gardiner	Senate President	gardiner.andy@flsenate.gov	(850) 487-5013
Tom Lee	Chairman of Senate Appropriations	lee.tom@flsenate.gov	(850) 487-5024
Jack Latvala	Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development	latvala.jack@flsenate.gov	(850) 487-5020
Bill Galvano	Senate Majority Leader	galvano.bill@flsenate.gov	(850) 487-5026
HOUSE LEADERSHIP:
Steve Crisafulli	Speaker of the House	steve.crisafulli@myfloridahouse.gov	(850) 717-5051
Richard Corcoran	Chairman of House Appropriations	richard.corcoran@myfloridahouse.gov	(850) 717-5037
Clay Ingram	Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and Economic Development	clay.ingram@myfloridahouse.gov	(850) 717-5001
Dana Young	House Majority Leader	dana.young@myfloridahouse.gov	(850) 717-5060

We will continue to send you briefings and alerts throughout the budget-development process. Please take action immediately when you get these action alerts. Decisions are being made daily in Tallahassee, and they need to hear from you about these issues in a timely manner.

Many thanks for your advocacy follow through on
action steps 1 and 2 above.

Your voice matters.