05/30/2025
AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS ACTION FUND
https://www.artsactionfund.org/breaking-news-updates-impacting-arts-culture-timeline
JUDICIAL UPDATES
5/27/2025: NPR and three Colorado public radio stations filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging executive order #14290, which seeks to eliminate federal funding for NPR and PBS. The plaintiffs argue that the order violates the First Amendment by retaliating against protected speech and infringes upon Congress's constitutional authority over federal spending. Plaintiffs claim the funding ban threatens the survival of independent journalism and silences voices that millions of Americans rely on for factual reporting, cultural content, and emergency communications.
5/22/2025: A federal judge has blocked President Trump's executive order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and ordered the reinstatement of 1,300 laid-off employees. U.S. District Judge Myong Joun of Massachusetts issued the preliminary injunction ruling that the mass layoffs would likely "cripple" the department’s ability to carry out its core functions, including special education support, federal financial aid, and civil rights enforcement. The judge rejected the administration’s argument that the move was a simple reorganization, emphasizing that such actions require congressional approval and cannot undermine statutory obligations.
5/12/2025: The ACLU of Rhode Island filed an amended complaint on behalf of Rhode Island Latino Arts, National Q***r Theater, The Theater Offensive, and Theatre Communications Group in their First Amendment lawsuit against the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), arguing that the agency’s implementation of an executive order banning “gender ideology” in federally funded projects violates free speech protections. Despite a court ruling in April that the NEA’s previous ban likely infringed on constitutional and statutory rights, the agency’s new guidelines remain vague and fail to assure applicants that their viewpoints won’t affect grant eligibility. The plaintiffs assert that NEA funding must be awarded based on artistic merit, not ideological conformity. They are seeking court intervention to protect the rights of artists and arts groups.
5/12/2025: The Authors Guild filed a class action lawsuit against the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The suit challenges the abrupt termination of approximately 1,400 NEH grants that were awarded to scholars, writers, and cultural institutions. The plaintiffs argue that the cancellations violate the Administrative Procedure Act, the Impoundment Control Act, and constitutional principles including the separation of powers and freedom of expression. Many grantees had structured their professional commitments around these funds, and the sudden revocation has jeopardized ongoing projects and financial stability.
EXECUTIVE UPDATES
5/8/2025: President Donald Trump abruptly dismissed Carla Hayden from her role as Librarian of Congress. She was appointed for a ten-year term originally set to conclude in 2026. Her termination followed criticism from the conservative American Accountability Foundation, which accused her of promoting "radical" children's literature and opposing Trump's agenda.
5/11/25: Days after firing Carla Hayden, Trump’s temporary administration official at the Library of Congress, which oversees the U.S. Copyright Office, fired its Director Shira Perlmutter. Earlier in May, the U.S. Copyright Office released a report examining whether artificial intelligence companies can use copyrighted materials to “train” their AI systems and then compete in the same market as the human-made works they were trained on.
5/8/2025: President Trump appointed Mary Anne Carter as the Chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. This will be Carter’s second appointment to the agency, the last being Trump’s first presidency.
CONGRESSIONAL UPDATE
5/19/25: House Republicans have now removed a provision from the tax bill that would have granted unprecedented authority to the Treasury Secretary to revoke the tax-exempt status from nonprofit organizations if the Secretary determines without due process that the nonprofit organization is supporting terrorist organizations.
5/14/25: The House Ways and Means Committee approved a major tax reform bill covering many of President Trump's policy initiatives. Unfortunately, the legislation makes it easier to strip nonprofits of their tax-exempt status, grant the Secretary of Treasury unchecked authority to designate nonprofits as terrorist-supporting organizations, increase taxes on foundation and university endowments. While the bill does reinstate a modified universal charitable tax deduction to non-itemizers, it is overshadowed by damaging actions taken against nonprofits.
