Oregon arts leaders fight for ‘critical’ industry-saving legislation
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Despite Oregon’s arts sector garnering $829 million in economic activity every year, the state is ranked at No. 41 for its annual arts funding per capita. That’s why employees at arts organizations are encouraging lawmakers to pass two bills that would allocate more money to cultural spaces statewide.
House Bill 4124 and Senate Bill 1582 would call on the Oregon Business Development Department to distribute more than $27.4 million to arts organizations financially recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. The companion bills would also help fund much-needed capital projects.
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Bend’s High Desert Museum and Chamber Music Northwest are just two organizations that would benefit from this legislation. The list also includes the Portland Art Museum, Oregon Symphony and Salem Parks Foundation.
Dana Whitelaw, executive director of the High Desert Museum, said only six people were allowed in the 100,000-square-foot building at some points of the pandemic. She said the museum was able to sustain itself with loans and grants, but it still took an “incredible hit” that could be alleviated with support from lawmakers.
According to Peter Bilotta, executive director of Chamber Music Northwest, the organization has seen a 30% to 50% dip in attendance at post-pandemic events and concerts. He estimated it would take up to five years to reach 2019’s attendance levels.
However, he believes HB 4124 and SB 1582 would benefit arts organizations facing similar struggles, along with Oregon’s overall economy.
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“There are more than 60,000 people that are employed in arts and cultural organizations throughout the state and those people alone pay about $150 million in taxes to state and local entities,” Bilotta told KOIN 6. “So it’s not just that the arts are important in our lives… it’s that they’re critical to our state’s economy and every one of our lives and communities because of that.”
In 2023 alone, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival launched a fundraiser to save its season, Artists Repertory Theatre suspended performances due to a lack of funding and the Portland Opera planned to sell its headquarters to eliminate debt.
If organizations like these were forced to fully shut down, Bilotta expects it would take decades for new, similar organizations to take their place.
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Whitelaw added that such a loss would affect all Oregonians.
“[Art] fills our lives with incredible value and adds an incredible component to our quality of life,” Whitelaw said. “It’s so much of the reason why we live here. The cultural resources that our state has are totally part of that existence value for us and part of that second paycheck that we have as Oregonians.”
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