Months after President Trump proposed excluding the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) from his Fiscal Year 2026 budget, the Republican-led United States House of Representatives approved a bill that would continue funding both agencies.
Last Thursday, January 8, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in favor of several funding measures, including the Interior and Environment Appropriations Act of 2026, the bill that determines the annual allocations for the NEA, NEH, the Smithsonian Institution, the National Gallery of Art, the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA), and other cultural programs.
The House voted in favor of full or near-full funding for the nation’s federal cultural agencies despite various threats from the Trump administration to dismantle or otherwise reduce allocations for many of them. The Senate is expected to pass the bill, but on Monday, it delayed a final vote.
The House voted to fund the NEA and NEH, both of which cancelled grants en masse under Trump's leadership last year, at $207 million each, slighty lower than the prior year’s $209 million. Previously, the Trump administration had proposed eliminating both agencies completely, designating them “unnecessary governmental agencies.” After Trump assumed the presidency, the federal cultural agencies rescinded millions in grants awarded under the Biden administration.
In a statement shared with Hyperallergic, Americans for the Arts CEO Erin Harkey called the House passage a “major win for the arts.” The advocacy organization attributed the passage to public action in support of the agencies.
“Arts organizations depend on reliable public investment to plan responsibly, serve their neighbors, and steward taxpayer dollars effectively,” Harkey said. “This victory proves sustained advocacy works.”
While the bill would fund the agencies’ operations at levels comparable to those of the prior administration, it is unclear how that funding could be distributed. Previously, Trump has suggested repurposing the cancelled NEH funds for his peculiar “National Garden of American Heroes.” The president also fired the majority of the agency’s advisory council, with plans to reappoint members himself.
After Trump signed an executive order threatening funding for organizations that recognize trans and nonbinary people, the NEA attempted to restrict funding for projects that promoted so-called “gender ideology,” but the requirement was overturned by a federal court last year. The agency also terminated its Challenge America grants, which specifically funded projects in “underserved” communities, including rural areas and unhoused populations, and said it would prioritize funding initiatives that “celebrate and honor the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.”
Despite the NEA’s elimination of the Challenge America grants, the new bill stipulates that the agency’s chair is mandated to prioritize “awarding financial assistance for projects, productions, workshops, or programs that serve underserved populations.”
Last week, the House also approved a typical $1.08 billion appropriation for the Smithsonian despite the institution’s smaller-than-normal budget request, which would have eliminated funding for the fledgling National Museum of the American Latino (NMAL) and the Anacostia Community Museum, focused on the Black history of Washington, DC. Thursday’s bill, however, held that $27 million of the institution’s allocation could be used for NMAL and the American Women's History Museum. It did not clarify funding for the Annacostia Community Museum.
House support for the Smithsonian comes as the institution faces the Trump administration’s renewed attempts to control its content. Trump has demanded that the Smithsonian respond to his demands for information about exhibitions and curatorial processes by today, Tuesday.
The bill would also fund the IAIA in New Mexico at a typical level, though Trump’s budget proposal excluded any funding for the contemporary art institution. The National Gallery of Art also received a comparable funding package.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), another cultural agency the Trump administration has sought to eliminate, receives funding through a separate bill. A court victory in December restored rescinded IMLS grants for museums and libraries.
As the NEA and NEH receive their full allocations, Harkey said that Americans for the Arts would advocate for fair distribution of the funds.
“The arts are not a partisan issue, but a public good that reflects who we are as a nation and helps build the future we share,” Harkey said.