Area humanities organizations face uncertainty over federal funding cuts

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

Public institutions for the arts and humanities are watching the national news closely to see how widespread cuts to federal programs by the Trump Administration will impact their budgets.

Continuing the campaign of widespread cuts to federal programs, from the USDA to AmeriCorps, last month the president issued an executive order to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to effectively dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), reducing the federal agency staff to the bare minimum and bringing into question whether grants awarded through the Grants to States program will be honored.

“We only get a limited amount of federal cash, but a lot of the services that the state library provides for us are at least partially paid for by federal funding,” said Charles City Public Library Director Annette Dean.

The Grants to States program allots just over $2 million a year for Iowa libraries, supporting continuing education and certification for library staff, website hosting services, and the state’s interlibrary loan system.

Without that funding, libraries will either have to pay for these programs out of their own budgets or forego them altogether.

The state library also utilizes Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funding to assist libraries with technology updates. In 2019, the Charles City Public Library used that grant to update half of its computers.

“The elimination of those funds means no further grant projects by IMLS to improve library service,” said Dean.

The Charles City Public Library had already been feeling the strain of funding cuts as the Iowa Legislature in 2023 eliminated the local voter approved library specific levy, which will reduce funding to the local library by $67,000 in 2029.

Last year that loss of revenue forced the library to reduce its operating hours. This year that reduction in funding, amounting to $30,000, will come out of materials.

“It makes it hard to maintain a standard of service,” said Dean.

The Charles City Arts Center is partially funded by a recurring grant provided by the National Endowment for the Arts that amounts to $5,000 a year.

“If it gets frozen, we won’t have that,” said Arts Center Director Emily Kiewel.

The Arts Center also occasionally receives grants for programming through the National Endowment for the Humanities and was considering applying for a grant this year before the Trump Administration canceled most of its grant programs.

“They have funded Art-a-Fest in the past,” said Kiewel.

Earlier this week, the National Endowment for the Arts began sending grant termination notices, following a proposed budget that would eliminate both the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Charles City Arts Center receives its funds through the Iowa Arts Council, which receives funding through Arts Midwest, which in turn receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. Kiewel said she isn’t sure whether that will be affected this year by the recent changes or if those organizations will fund grants through other means.

“I think we’re OK this year,” said Kiewel. “I’m waiting to hear.”

The uncertainty about federal funding is exasperated by the unknown fate of the president’s orders, many of which have faced legal challenges to determine to what extent the executive branch can deny congressionally approved spending.

Last week, a lawsuit filed by the American Library Association resulted in a temporary restraining order preventing the dismantling of the IMLS.

Fortunately for local history lovers, the Floyd County Museum is not reliant on federal funds, putting it outside of the national legal drama.

“Most of our funding we get from local grants,” said Museum Director Mckenna Lloyd.

While federal money does support programs that offer resources and grants, such as the Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area, it’s not a regular part of the museum’s operations unless there is a specific project in mind.

“This year we probably weren’t going to go for any [grants] anyway,” said Lloyd.