President Trump proposed to eliminate the National Arts Fund and the National Fund for the Humanities in the budget released Friday, setting his sights on two institutions he had tried to abolish during his first term.
The fund, along with the museum and library worship labs, was one of the entities listed in the section titled “Elimination of Small Agents” in the budget blueprint for next year. The proposal “aligns with the president's efforts to scale back the federal government to strengthen accountability, reduce waste and reduce unnecessary government agencies,” and said Trump's past budget proposals “supported these exclusions.”
In 2017, during his first term, Trump proposed to eliminate donations for both the arts and the humanities. But bipartisan support in Congress kept them alive, and in fact their budgets grew during the first Trump administration.
Since Trump took office this year, his administration has aimed to be a national fund for humanities and museums and libraries' worship labs, canceling most of the existing grants and firing most of its staff. However, the arts agency had not yet announced any major cuts.
The proposal to eliminate donations drew a quick and intense response from Democrats. One vowed to fight Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reid's plan to eliminate “tooth and claws” from the NEA.
Maine's president Cherry Pingley, the top Democrat on the House Subcommittee, which oversees the NEA, said in an interview that Trump “has made a broad attack on the arts, both in funding and content.” She cited his proposal to eliminate donations, as well as his efforts to influence the Smithsonian facility.
“We were able to recover our funds last time,” she said. “But as you know, based on the first 100 days of this administration, they no longer feel like keeping much of the government alive, their attacks are focused on everything, and the art already has an eye on their backs.”
At the Kennedy Center, the new leaders set up by Trump have worked to cut costs and cut staff. Two people with fire knowledge said 21 more employees were fired in several departments on Friday. Around 40 staff members lost their jobs as Trump took over the center.
The Kennedy Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.
The NEA supports arts organizations and projects in all council districts in the country, and has traditionally been popular with lawmakers at both conferences. Many of that individual grants are of modest size. However, it can be important to account for a larger share of your budget, especially for small organizations. Grants are often seen as marks of distinction and help attract potential donors from the private sector.
The Arts Fund has not had a permanent leader since Maria Rosario Jackson, appointed by former President Joseph R. Biden Jr., resigned when Trump took office. Mary Anne Carter, who chaired the agency during the first Trump administration, is the title of senior advisor and oversees the agency this year.
The Trump administration was already improving the distribution of donation grants. Shortly after the start of the second term, NEA announced it would remove this year's grant from programs that support underserved groups and communities projects.
The agency later announced it would require grants to commit to not promote “diversity, equity, inclusion” or “gender ideology” in ways that violate President Trump's executive orders. As the court's challenges were considered, both requirements were put on hold, and recently the agency posted a notice suggesting that grant applicants are no longer required to authenticate that they do not promote gender ideology.
Founded in 1965, the Arts Fund is a federal agency that distributes grants to arts organizations and state arts agencies around the country. Its budget was $207 million in 2024, and its financial report said it provided more than $163 million in grants that year.
Despite attempting to close the Fund for the Arts in 2026, the Trump administration is moving to redirect some of the funds already allocated.
Last month, the National Humanities announced that IT and the Arts Fund would each donate $17 million, and $17 million to build the National Garden of American Heroes proposed by President Trump.
Javier C. Hernández and Jennifer Schusler contributed the report.
