"Colorado Creates" New Grant Program
The Colorado Council on the Arts (CCA) has less money to invest in creative industry through its grant program this year, and it is estimated that through fiscal year 2013 state arts funds may be half of what they were in 2009. In 2009, the CCA provided $907,000 to 128 organizations in 33 counties - a 25% decrease from funds awarded in 2008. So it doesn't come as much surprise that CCA is ending the "Grants to Artists and Organizations” program, replacing it with “Colorado Creates” a new grant program that promotes statewide investment in creative activities and organizations.
"Colorado Creates" is aligned with the Creative Economy Strategic Plan that the state is in the process of developing. An advisory panel is currently meeting. Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter announced Creative Industries Legislation on January 5, presenting three bills. The first proposes to merge the CCA, the Art in Public Places Program and the Colorado Office of Film into one agency. The second recommends a change to the 1% of new capital construction costs set aside for public art. The current law doesn't apply to bond-like certificate funding and 13 state projects have been completed without including an art element, which means lost funding for independent art businesses. The third bill would make it easier for the state to offer tax credits to filmmakers by reducing the requirement that 75% of a film's non-payroll budget be spent in Colorado. The following day, Gov. Ritter announced that he will not seek re-election, a decision he attributed to personal and family reasons. During his press conference, the Governor did suggest that not running for reelection would free him to make the "tough, unpopular decisions that need to be made" about the budget, unencumbered by election year politics.
At first glance, the new grant program may seem to be a bit premature since no strategic plan currently exists for economic development of an as yet undefined "creative economy." However, the CCA's new program comes after "listening tours", online surveys, planning retreats and one-on-one meetings. The language calls for a more streamlined and standardized approach prioritizing existing organizations and contributing public monies to leverage other fund sources.
In a new twist, all funded applicants with organizations within the same operating budget range will receive the same amount of money. Proposals may be for operating income or project support, which is a significant change from the previous grant program. While previous categories are no longer applicable, the review criteria remains the same: artistic excellence/merit; community involvement/benefit; and implementation capacity.
The most significant development is that applicants who receive CCA grant funding for three years in a row will be required to “sit out” a fourth year and not apply for funding. This will be implemented beginning in 2011.
What does remain is that individual artists can only apply for a grant via a fiscal agent who is not already applying for a CCA grant. In other words, no support from the state for individual artist business-owners, as has been the case since the last fellowships were granted in 2003.
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