Under Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed budget, state funding for the arts would remain essentially flat into the next fiscal year.

This comes at a perilous time for arts across the country. Since beginning his second term just over a year ago, President Donald Trump has clawed back grants given through the National Endowment for the Arts, announced he will close the Kennedy Center for two years of renovations after taking over control of the venue and called for a sweeping review of Smithsonian exhibitions.

Funding for museums and the humanities has also been slashed.

In the state budget released last week, Pritzker proposed $25.9 million for the Illinois Arts Council, up just slightly from the $25.7 million allocated in fiscal year 2026.

Some arts advocates say the flat funding proposal is worrisome in a precarious moment for the sector overall.

Arts Alliance Illinois, the statewide arts advocacy organization, is calling on the General Assembly to increase the arts budget by 20%, which it says would restore state funding levels to where they were 20 years ago. Since then, fiscal support for the arts has dipped on the state level.

In 2025, the state made a big increase in funding for the arts, growing the budget from $15.5 million to $25.5 million annually. Still, the Arts Alliance says the state has not supported the arts the way it did two decades ago.

“We’re grateful to not see any cuts in a tough budget year, but we’re not where we need to be in terms of per capita funding for arts and culture,” said Claire Rice, executive director of Arts Alliance Illinois. “We really want to see that number higher, particularly since arts funding is such a small fraction of the total budget. Even modest increases in the grand scheme of the budget means a lot to our creative community.”

The Illinois Arts Council administers grants to organizations and artists statewide. It also sets public art policies and increases access to the arts in schools. Last year, the agency launched a schools-specific grant program, which provided supplies and materials to eligible schools.

The council said it saw a 120% increase in grant applications received in 2025. Joshua Davis-Ruperto, the executive director of the Illinois Arts Council, previously told WBEZ direct funding for artists is a priority for his agency.

“When talking to a lot of individual artists, one of the things that I found was that they were getting money for projects, but the problem was they weren’t able to pay their light bills,” Davis-Ruperto said in 2025. “And so, we started thinking about what would general operating support look like for these individuals? Looking at them as entrepreneurs and small businesses.”

In addition to receiving dollars from the state’s general fund, the arts council receives federal dollars, which remain steady in the budget forecast.

Pritzker has often expressed support for the arts and has said the sector helps drive economic growth in Illinois.

“Government support for the arts is vital to building a more cohesive society,” the governor said in a 2025 video posted online for the Arts Council’s 60th anniversary. “It creates increased opportunities for open expression in our communities, and it supports economic growth and jobs, and above all, we see the importance of embracing cultural diversity, something we pride ourselves on here in Illinois.”

But, will investment continue? The Arts Alliance says that falling behind in funding could lead to “losing talent and long-term economic growth.”

The Alliance announced Friday that it will lead a landmark new study to examine “the economic power, infrastructure, and future potential of the Illinois creative economy,” which it plans to publish in June. It comes on the heels of a report released this month by the Chicago Independent Venue League that found that nearly three out of four independent live entertainment venues in the city are currently not profitable.

“The small businesses and the independent entrepreneurs that comprise our creative economy mean serious business for Illinois,” Rice said. “We need to continue to have the data that demonstrates our economic impact, that really shows our decision makers that these are economic engines in their communities.”

The work is being supported by a public-private partnership, including funds from Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Illinois Arts Council and the Pritzker Foundation.

On the city level, Chicago’s cultural affairs department saw a 15% funding cut during the latest budget cycle.

To bridge the gaps in government and philanthropic support, some nonprofit groups have increased arts grants, like Chicago’s 3Arts, which awarded more than $1 million in artist grants last fall, marking a more than $400,000 increase from the year before.

Courtney Kueppers is an arts and culture reporter at WBEZ.