Rep. Maxwell Frost Introduces Bill to Fund Artists

The legislation establishes four new grant programs for eligible emerging artists.

Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) introduced a bill on Wednesday to fund artists through a series of grant programs. The freshman Democrat from Orlando was quick to point out on Tuesday that the U.S. is one of the only major countries in the world without a government program to fund artists.

“I used to do a lot of work in music and something I was learning, especially speaking with internationally touring artists and artists that come from other countries, and learning more about how film works in a lot of other countries is, it seemed you know, I started to see that a lot of people would do their tours, do albums, do films that were partially or sometimes fully funded by their government, which I thought was interesting,” Frost told Capitol Press.

The bill would establish artist grants in the following categories, based on the FACTOR program in Canada — 

• Progress Grant – Up to $2,000 to support a year of artist activities.

• Project Grant – Up to $100,000 per project can be used over two years.

• Live Performance Grant – Up to $35,000 for live performances.

• Development Fund – Up to $10,000 to pay artists' living and working expenses while they research, write, or cultivate stories or projects.

Any emerging artist in any art field is eligible if they have a regular creative practice, provide relevant and accessible art, and have net earnings of less than $50,000 and $400,000 in the previous five and 20 years respectively from art projects.

Funds from these grants could be used for costs associated with sound recording, touring, showcasing, video content creation, marketing, musician fees, rehearsal fees, travel costs, and video or live stream production costs, among other expenses.

The bill is not without it’s detractors. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) calls himself “a live music guy” but was vehemently against Frost’s proposal when we caught up with the far-right firebrand on Tuesday. “I love Texas music, but I ain’t gotta find that,” said Roy. “I mean what world are these people living in it? Where does this money come from?”

Frost did not provide the overall cost of his legislation, which he indicated would be determined by its eventual legislative vehicle. So far, the bill is endorsed by the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, National Independent Venues Association, United Musicians & Allied Workers, Recording Academy, and American Association of Independent Music (A2IM).