On March 14, President Trump issued an Executive Order directing further cuts to an agency that is already operating at a minimum level, making up only 0.0046% of the overall federal budget. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is the main source of federal support for libraries and museums and efficiently provides critical resources to libraries and museums in all 50 states and territories.
SLOMA is a current recipient of IMLS funding and will be directly and negatively impacted by this order. IMLS grant-supported programs include First Fridays and Second Saturdays, artist talks, school tours, workshops, and other free programs that are enjoyed by tens of thousands of Central Coast residents and visitors every year. Read our 2024 press release announcing the grant awards for more information.
Please email AND call your members of Congress today. It is very important that you include in your email how important IMLS is to you, your museum, and the community your museum serves.
Instructions from the American Alliance of Museums:
- Visit https://www.congressweb.com/aam/94, enter your address to find your reps, and select Go.
- The page will update with an email icon at the top automatically selected, with the template email you should edit, and your members of Congress already identified.
- You can personalize your message or update the below copy provided by SLOMA and paste it into the 2nd paragraph.
- If you click on the phone icon, the page will switch to the draft phone scripts including phone numbers for your House member and both Senators.
Voicing your support for the IMLS can take as little as a minute but could impact SLOMA and thousands of other museums and libraries in America for years to come. Thank you for your support.
SLOMA
[PERSONALIZE THE BELOW COPY AS NEEDED AND PASTE INTO THE AAM FORM]
IMLS is critical to cultural institutions like my local museum, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA). As the only art museum in San Luis Obispo County, SLOMA serves as a vital community resource, providing free access to exhibitions and public programs for children, adults, and families across the Central Coast.
Last year, SLOMA was awarded two prestigious IMLS grants—Inspire! for Small Museums and Museums for America—a transformative investment in our region. These grants will enable the museum to offer admission-free programs for the next three years, including an essential partnership with local school districts to provide arts education for our county’s most at-risk elementary students and their hardworking teachers. Without IMLS funding, these opportunities—benefiting tens of thousands of your constituents—would disappear overnight.
Beyond their cultural impact, the museums that IMLS supports are also a key economic driver. The arts and culture sector generates over $50 billion annually and supports more than 726,000 jobs nationwide. Yet, IMLS accounts for just 0.0046% of the federal budget.