Texas Commission of the Arts Funding Update

On Friday June 17th, Governor Rick Perry signed the General Appropriations bill for the next two years.  He did not veto the funding for the Texas Commission on the Arts.  The agency will have a budget of $3.7 million for each of the next two years, which reflects a 50 percent reduction to the grants budget and a 30 percent reduction in staff.

Questions should be directed to Gary Gibbs, TCA executive director or Jim Bob McMillan, deputy director.

Texas Parks and Wildlife

From the Texas Parks and Wildlife's Recreation Grants Newsletter: 

SUSPENSION OF GRANT FUNDING

The 82^nd Texas Legislature has suspended all Texas Recreation and Parks Account (TRPA), and all Large County & Municipality Recreation and Parks Account funding for the FY 2012-2013 biennium.   The following grant programs are affected by these cuts; Outdoor Recreation, Indoor Recreation, Small Community, Urban Outdoor, Urban Indoor, and the Community Outdoor Outreach Program.  Limited federal funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund may be available for some of these programs.  Please check our website periodically for updates.  http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/business/grants

RECREATIONAL TRAIL, BOATING ACCESS, AND BOAT PUMP-OUT GRANT FUNDING

The Recreational Trail, Boating Access, and Boat Pump-out Grant Programs are federally funded through provisions in the Federal Highway Funding Bill.  At present, we expect funding to be available for these programs.  The Federal Highway Funding Bill expired in October 2009, but Congress has authorized funding for all programs in the Bill through a series of continuing resolutions that has kept funding at 2009 levels.  If Congress passes a new Highway Funding Bill, these programs could be altered or eliminated.  At present, the application deadline is October 31 for Boating Access Grants; February 1 for Recreational Trail Grants and Boat Pump-out Grants are accepted on a rolling basis.  Please check our website for updates.

 

A MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

Connect Your Community to America's Great Outdoors!

Are you trying to protect your local rivers, save an unspoiled landscape, or build trails where everyone in your community can enjoy nature?  Every year, the National Park Service helps hundreds of locally-driven projects that create opportunities for healthy outdoor recreation, connect youth with the outdoors, and connect communities to parks.  Rivers, Trails, & Conservation Assistance from the National Park Service provides no funding, but our experienced staff can help communities plan for success. Applications for technical assistance will be accepted until August 1. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to discuss their project ideas with a staff member in your area before preparing an application.

Visit www.nps.gov/rtca for complete information and application.

Texas Commission on the Arts: Arts Respond

From the TCA: 

Texas Commission on the Arts would like to remind you that we are currently accepting applications for Arts Respond applications for next fiscal year (Sept 1, 2011- August 31, 2012).

Arts Respond Projects (deadline July 15, 2011)
Arts Respond Performance Support (deadline August 1, 2011)

Please be aware our budget for next fiscal year has not yet been determined, but we do want to share what we know at this point.  We hope this will help you in making better use of your development efforts.

Our funding for Economic Development has been eliminated entirely for the next two years.  This includes project grants focused on economic development as well as most of our funds for performances for festivals,
etc.  [This was a legislative strategy to reduce the State spending across all agencies, not just TCA.]

Our Education funding is likely to continue to be strong for the next two years.  This includes project grants focused on K-12 education as well as performances and activities for schools and K-12 audiences.

As always, the TCA Program Staff is here to help if you have any questions or concerns:
512/463-5535 ext. zero
800/252-9415 (message only)
webapp@arts.state.tx.us

Wetlands and Arts Projects

Wetland Program Development Grants (FY11 Region 04)
Agency: Environmental Protection Agency
Deadline: July 5, 2011
Award Ceiling: $600,000
Award Floor: $200,000
LINK TO FULL ANNOUNCEMENT

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting proposals from eligible applicants to build or refine State/Tribal/local government wetland programs as described in Section I, FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION, of this announcement.

Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) 
Agency: National Endowment for the Arts
Deadline: August 11, 2011
Award Amount: $10,000 to $100,000
LINK TO FULL ANNOUNCEMENT

To support the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and the strengthening of communities through the arts. Within these areas, innovative projects are strongly encouraged.

The Frees Foundation

The Frees Foundation awards grants in four areas: community services, education, health and housing. Emphasis will be given to organizations and programs to benefit women, children, youth and families. Priority will be given to international aid and emergency relief. The Frees Foundation prefers to fund organizations in the Houston area and the state of Texas.

Deadlines are September 1, 2011, March 1, 2012 and September 1, 2012. Funding is available after January 1, 2012. LINK TO GRANT APPLICATION INFORMATION.

Grant Cancellation

The Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) regrets to inform you that the EU-US ATLANTIS Call for Proposals EACEA/36/10 published on January 5th 2011 (Official Journal of the European Union 2011/C 2/02) and later amended by a corrigendum published on April 7th 2011 (Official Journal 2011/C 108/12) has been cancelled.

This is due to severe cuts in the 2011 US budget meaning that the funds needed to match the EU contribution are not available. 

We thank you for your interest in our programme and your commitment to improving transatlantic collaboration and academic networking.

A formal cancellation notice has been published in the Official Journal JO C 142.

http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/bilateral_cooperation/eu_us/funding/calls_2011_en.php

Technology, Disabilities and Microentrepreneurs

Name: Technology and Media Services for Individuals with Disabilities
Agency: Department of Education
Deadline: June 20, 2011
Award Ceiling: $1,500,000
LINK TO FULL ANNOUNCEMENT 

The purposes of the Technology and Media Services for Individuals with Disabilities program are to: (1) Improve results for children with disabilities by promoting the development, demonstration, and use of technology; (2) support educational media services activities designed to be of educational value in the classroom setting to children with disabilities; and (3) provide support for captioning and video description that are appropriate for use in the classroom setting. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.327N.

Name: Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program
Agency: Business and Cooperative Programs
Deadline: September 30, 2011 (RMAP applications are accepted on a rolling basis)
Award Ceiling: $130,000
LINK TO FULL ANNOUNCEMENT

Technical assistance-only (TA-only) grants will competitively be made to MDOs for the purpose of providing technical assistance and training to prospective borrowers. TA-only grants will be made to eligible MDOs that seek to provide business-based technical assistance and training to eligible microentrepreneurs and microenterprises, but do not seek funding for a direct loan under RMAP.