Press Releases

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced eight Maine arts organizations will receive grants totaling $400,000 from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The grants were funded through the CARES Act and will support staff salaries, fees for artists or contracted personnel, and facilities costs. Six of those organizations are in the First Congressional District, which Pingree represents.

“As the co-chair of the Congressional Arts Caucus, I know how much of an economic impact arts and cultural organizations have on our local economy. Maine’s arts organizations are not only great spaces for cultural enrichment—they are employers and cornerstone institutions for local economies,” said Pingree. ”I’m proud that these organizations will receive funding from the NEA to keep operating and pay their employees during this crisis.”

“Though I was proud to push for this funding in the CARES Act, artists and arts organizations desperately need more support. The pandemic has devastated the creative economy, with Americans for the Arts estimating a nationwide loss of $6.7 billion to date. I’ve led my colleagues in urging major additional funding to the NEA and other cultural agencies in the next COVID-19 relief package. The arts are keeping so many of us connected during this time of social distancing – we can’t leave them behind.”

Details of the grants as follows:

• Portland Symphony Orchestra ($50,000) – Portland, Maine
• Portland Ovations ($50,000) – Portland, Maine
• Portland Stage Company ($50,000) – Portland, Maine
• The Telling Room ($50,000) – Portland, Maine
• Points North Institute, aka Camden International Film Festival ($50,000) – Camden, Maine
• Cultural Resources, Inc. ($50,000) – Rockport, Maine
• Penobscot Theatre Company ($50,000) – Bangor, Maine
• L.A. Public Theatre, Inc., aka The Public Theatre ($50,000) – Lewiston, Maine

Pingree is the co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Arts Caucus. She also serves as the Vice Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, where she oversees NEA, arts, and cultural funding. She has led advocacy in the U.S. House of Representatives to incorporate robust funding for arts and cultural organizations in COVID-19 response efforts, including multiple letters that urged House leadership to support the cultural sector’s payroll and operating costs. 

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