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February 9, 2022
ADVOCACY

It's officially budget season

On Tuesday, February 8, Governor Wolf presented his Executive Budget for 2022-2023 before PA's House and Senate. With a spend amount over $43.7 billion, compared to last year's $37.5 billion, the proposed budget met with immediate and predictable reactions from House and Senate members. The Executive Budget serves as a beginning for the budget process, and it's likely once again that lawmakers will pull the reins back on the spending number. The Associated Press published this story with budget highlights.

Pennsylvania's revenues are continuing to exceed expectations, and while the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's finances are in good shape now, there have been warnings about its structural deficit's needing attention.

The Senate Appropriations Committee will convene budget hearings beginning on February 22. The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is scheduled for its hearing on March 17. The deadline for lawmakers to have a budget in place is June 30, 2022.

How did museums fare?

The PHMC saw a modest increase in funding for its operations. The allocation for its Cultural and Historical Support grants remains at $2 million. The Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA), the source of operational funding for art museums, likewise saw a similar increase for its operations within the Office of the Governor with its grant programs' remaining at the same levels as last year. In the Department of Community and Economic Development's area of the budget, Marketing for Zoos is slated for $800,000, the same as last year.

Other state news of interest

Pennsylvania's lawmakers struggled to establish new legislative district maps for voters, and the Legislative Reapportionment Committee voted to approve new maps on Friday, February 5. Some challenges may remain, including legal ones, and the next hurdle is February 15, the day anyone seeking office in Pennsylvania may begin collecting signatures to be included on this year's ballot. As a result of delays to draw these maps, it is possible that Pennsylvania's primary elections will be postponed. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has the challenge of drawing new congressional maps. This process resulted in the approval of a map yesterday, February 7, and the court will hold hearings around that decision before it is finalized.


MUSEUMS ADVOCACY DAY

The American Alliance of Museums announced that its upcoming Museums Advocacy Day will move to a virtual program instead of a live event in Washington, D.C.

PA Museums asks for your support for this work on the national level. Representing a state with a large number of museums receiving a significant level of federal funding from various agencies, PA Museums connects with Museums Advocacy Day attendees, organizes and helps prepare advocates from Pennsylvania, and meets with lawmakers and legislative staffers. Please consider making a donation to PA Museums to support our leadership at Museums Advocacy Day.

We encourage our members to participate in the American Alliance of Museums' Museums Advocacy Day, February 28-March 1, 2022. It is critical that museum advocates have an opportunity to meet with lawmakers and press our case for support. We encourage our members to save the date and plan to participate.
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NOMINATIONS OPEN FOR THE HISTORICAL MARKER PROGRAM

In Pennsylvania’s many diverse communities, PHMC's iconic blue and gold markers are history lessons, travelers' guideposts, tourist attractions, and sources of pride. 

New markers are approved and dedicated each year to reflect the commonwealth's interesting and important history. This year, nominations must be submitted through PA-SHARE, an online database.

Join Alli Davis, Historical Marker Coordinator, for a free one-hour webinar to learn about one of PHMC's most popular programs, how to use the new PA-SHARE system, and how to increase your nomination's chances for success. Topics include:
 
  • Criteria for Approval, including recent changes
  • Nomination, review, and approval process
  • Expectations for approved markers
  • Tips & tricks for successful nominations.

Nominations must be received on or before the NEW annual deadline of June 1.
PA MUSEUMS IN THE NEWS

Pennlive covered how the PHMC fared in the Governor's budget.

Triblive featured Paolo Pivi: I Want It All, a new shoe exhibit at the Andy Warhol Museum.

The Courier Post highlighted the Betsy Ross House's Airbnb offerings.

Governor Wolf visited the ExpERIEnce Children's Museum.

WFMZ Bethlehem had the scoop on new funding to support Bethlehem's World Heritage Site bid.

Operawire.com covered the Penn Museum's honoring Marian Anderson.

The Lower Bucks Times reported that the Michener Art Museum will present an exhibition of Keith Haring's work.

Erienewsnow shared that the Erie Maritime Museum's Flagship Niagara is planning to sail in 2022.

NextPittsburgh took a look at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's collections.

KYW featured Black History Month programming at the African American Museum in Philadelphia.

KEYSTONE HISTORIC PRESERVATION GRANTS

The PHMC'S State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) hosted two informative webinars in January for anyone interested in learning more about the Keystone Historic Preservation grant program, creating competitive applications, and connecting with program staff. Recordings of the webinars, along two other helpful videos, are now available online:


The deadline for Keystone grants is March 1, 2022.
NOMINATIONS OPEN FOR THE LEADERSHIP IN HISTORY AWARDS

For over seventy-five years, the American Association for State and Local history (AASLH) has given Leadership in History Awards to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history in order to make the past more meaningful to all people.

By publicly recognizing superior and innovative achievements, the Leadership in History Award winners serve as models and inspirations for others in the field. We offer awards for many different types of projects, including publications, exhibits, public programming, and more.

This awards program, with the exception of the Publications category, is non-competitive, meaning your nomination is not in competition with others for a finite amount of awards. Your nomination is evaluated alone on its own merits. We encourage nominations from small and all-volunteer organizations.

The nomination deadline is March 1, 2022. Please click here to learn more.
MEMBERSHIP

PA Museums updated job listings, including paid internships, at our website. If your museum has an open position, please send us your announcements.

Save the date for a webinar with PA Humanities and PA Museums, February 24 at noon, about a new fieldwide survey launching soon. Look for more information coming your way shortly.
RECOMMENDED

The PHMC published its annual report and included its Accessibility Excellence Project with PA Museums.

Here is a recently released report on nonprofit trends.

How welcoming are our institutions? Colleen Dilenschneider took a look.