Advocacy

Want to Join MPMA's Advocacy Committee?  

Have an issue that needs support?    

                            Contact MPMA at info@mpma.net                                              

Want to know if you can lobby or not?  Check out this article (October 2009)

MPMA's Advocacy Survey Results

MPMA's Advocacy

MPMA helps its members to get their issues heard at the regional and national levels. MPMA represents the mountain and plains section of the country at the American Association of Museums' Council of Regional Associations (CRA) which discusses and advises AAM on trends and issues from around the nation. MPMA encourages its members to inform MPMA about issues and trends from the field so that it can bring these to the attention of this national body. It also encourages members to alert MPMA to any situation that may require helping public officials better understand the role of museums in a local community or state.

Should you have an issue that MPMA can help with or should know about, please contact the MPMA office at 303.979.9358 or by email at info@mpma.net.    All confidential requests will be honored.  

MPMA POLICY ON ADVOCACY ENGAGEMENT

Federal Formula Grant Coalition:  MPMA is a member of the Coalition

Update: 

The Coalition is currently working to get federal formula funding into the reauthorization language for IMLS.

Background:

Did you know that the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) provided $210.5 million to libraries in 2006, while museums received only $36.5 million? Why the difference? Federal formula grants given from IMLS directly to the states accounted for $163.7 million of IMLS’ library authorization.

Service organizations representing museums at the state, regional, and national level have joined forces to seek reauthorizing legislation for IMLS in 2009 that includes federal formula grants for museums. This web site is dedicated to asking the museum community for strategic assistance in achieving the 2009 goal.

The Federal Formula Grant Coalition seeks legislation through Congress to provide funding to museums through a federal formula grant program. The model for this program is the one presently used by libraries where federal funds go directly to a state agency for distribution within the state. All monies would go through the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS); these monies would be in addition to the grants already distributed by IMLS.

This is an important issue for all of us and an article, If You Want More Money, Now's the Time to Ask: Federal Formula Grants for Museums, in History News may be helpful in understanding it. You can find it on the AASLH web site.

What MPMA is Doing

The MPMA Board signed the proposed package supporting the field's desire to include Federal Formula Funds in IMLS' Reauthorization in 2009.   It also, along with state associations and the CRA (Council of Regional Associations), signed a letter that was sent to the new administration's Transition Team in December 2008 to ask it to support museum policy in its planning.

We held a session at the MPMA's last two conference on Formula Grants for museums to bring a greater awareness to the issue.

If you have any questions on FFG feel free to contact MPMA Executive Director Monta Lee Dakin at mountplains@aol.com