In Acting Governor Codey’s budget address delivered on March 1, state funding for the arts is proposed at $25.1 million for fiscal year 2006. Of this total amount, the $22.7 million that will support cultural projects is supported by the hotel and motel occupancy fee. The New Jersey Cultural Trust has a fiscal 2006 appropriation of $720,000, which is the same level of funding as in fiscal 2005. ArtPRIDE encourages arts advocates to thank Acting Governor Codey for his support of the arts and to remind our legislators how important state arts dollars are to New Jersey’s quality of life. Visit ArtPRIDE’s Legislative Action Center at www.artpridenj.com to send your legislators an email in support of state arts funding. It’s easy!!

The Secretary of State will testify at Departmental Budget Hearings on Tuesday, April 19 at 11:30 am (Assembly Budget Committee – Room 11, 4th Floor State House Annex) and on Monday, May 2 at 11:30 am (Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee- Room 4, 1st Floor State House Annex). ArtPRIDE asks you to attend one or both of the hearings. While state arts support is now appropriated through a dedicated revenue source, it is important that we be present to remind legislators that we are being vigilant AND grateful!

Call ArtPRIDE at 609-443-3582 or email us to let us know if you and/or staff and board members plan to attend. We STILL need your support!

The 2005 Governor’s Conference on Tourism will be held April 20-22 at the Trump Marina Hotel Casino in Atlantic City. This year’s conference includes a Cultural Tourism Roundtable on Friday, April 22 at 11:15 and a session on how to develop festivals as a cultural tourism destinations.

The Cultural Tourism Roundtable will discuss ways to create and strengthen partnerships between New Jersey cultural organizations and other tourism stakeholders and will also examine how other states promote cultural and heritage tourism. It will be moderated by Ken Locicero of the South Jersey Cultural Alliance and Lesley Bensley of the Morris County Visitors Center.

Festival 101 will discuss what unique features about a community lend themselves to festival celebration. Panelists will discuss first steps, growing pains and dealing with success as well as the benefits of participating—from volunteers to corporate sponsors and tourism service providers. Panelists include Howard Freeman of the Quick Chek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning, Matt Bergheiser of Trenton Downtown Association that recently produced the first Patriots Week in Trenton, Ronnye Schreiber of the Jersey Shore Jazz & Blues Festival, and Sarah Anton of the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe.

Be a partner in tourism and join us in Atlantic City for these and other sessions that examine market trends, connecting with customers and the Governor’s Tourism Awards! For more information visit the NJ Travel Industry Association website at www.njtia.org

ArtPRIDE New Jersey will receive a Special Recognition Award for its statewide advocacy efforts at the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company Gala on Saturday April 30 at the Shakespeare Theatre of NJ.

VOICES, a choreographic symphony is a gala benefit evening to support the extraordinary artistic and arts education programming of the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company. It will feature the unique voices of three choreographers including Carolyn Dorfman. An “insider price” is available to members of the arts community who wish to attend the evening’s festivities. Call 908-687-8855 for more information or email the company at info.cddc@verizon.net.

Fifteen members of New Jersey’s arts community joined over 300 arts advocates from around the country in Washington DC to celebrate National Arts Advocacy Day, sponsored by Americans for the Arts. On March 15 all joined together on Capitol Hill to urge Congress to support increased funding for federal cultural agencies and arts education, more sound tax policies for artists who donate their work, and a more feasible system for cultural exchanges. The day kicked off with the Congressional Arts Breakfast, where elected officials including Rush Holt (D-District 12-NJ) joined celebrities such as Joe Pantoliano, Harry Hamlin, George Wendt and Fiona Apple in rallying the attendees.

ArtPRIDE thanks John Devol of Arts Horizons, David Gray of Patriots Theatre Foundaton, Barbara Handa of Somerset Art Association, Pat Kettenring of Rutgers Graduate School, Business and the Arts and Glassroots, Shawna Kile of Seton Hall University and Raritan High School in Hazlet, Rick Lasher of Arts Educators of NJ and Youth Art Month, Elinor Levy of the Northwest Jersey Folklife Project, Corrie Mason of the NJ Symphony Orchestra, Bob Morrison of the Music for All Foundation, Greg Perry of the Zimmerli Art Museum, Jeff Woodward of McCarter Theatre, David Sanders of the National Music Council, Gloria Sandiford of Rutgers Graduate School, Business & the Arts, and Ellen Yacoe of the American Dance Therapy Association (who presently lives in Montclair). We had a great time learning about and advocating for the issues and meeting with our elected officials in Washington!

For those who could not be present at Advocacy Day, you can still email your congressional representatives in Washington to support increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts. Use the Legislative Action Center at ArtPRIDE's web site. If you prefer not to use email, you have the option to print out a letter that can be mailed to your elected officials.