NEA Terminates Grants Following Trump’s Proposal to Eliminate the Agency

The National Endowment for the Arts has begun terminating previously approved and recommended grants to arts organizations across the country, according to reporting by The New York Times. The notices were sent by email late Friday, just hours after President Trump unveiled a budget proposal for the next fiscal year that calls for the complete elimination of the NEA.

Arts administrators described the timing and delivery of the cancellations—via non-reply email addresses—as abrupt and disruptive, especially for organizations that had factored the funding into current programming and budgets.

In Portland, Oregon, Portland Playhouse learned it was losing a $25,000 grant just one day before opening its production of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone. “Times are tough for theaters — we’re already pressed, and in this moment where every dollar matters, this was a critical piece of our budget,” said Brian Weaver, the company’s producing artistic director.

Some recipients were told that their "tentative funding recommendation" was being withdrawn, while others who had already received formal award notices were informed that their grants were terminated effective May 31, 2025. The NEA cited a shift in funding priorities, stating that future support would focus on projects that align with the administration’s goals, including celebrations of American independence, support for veterans and tribal communities, and economic initiatives for Asian American communities.

At the same time, many of the rescinded grants had been intended to support work by artists of color, raising questions about the administration's stated commitment to diversity. Yale Repertory Theater lost a $30,000 grant meant to support a stage adaptation of Zora Neale Hurston’s Spunk. In Omaha, Nebraska, the Great Plains Theater Commons had its $35,000 grant for a play festival withdrawn.

In California, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley received notice that its $10,000 grant to support a writers group had been canceled. “Disheartening and infuriating,” said artistic director Giovanna Sardelli.

Other affected organizations included The American Conservatory Theater, The Civilians in New York, The Eugene Symphony in Oregon, and The New Harmony Project in Indianapolis, which lost a $40,000 grant for a writers’ residency. “This Friday night mass email that cut funding for so many arts organizations all over the country is a clear attack on the arts,” said Jenni Werner, executive artistic director of The New Harmony Project.

President Trump previously attempted to eliminate the NEA during his first term, but the agency was preserved through bipartisan congressional support. Whether similar support exists in the current political climate remains uncertain.