Cultural Access Gig Harbor

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WHAT IS THE CULTURAL ACCESS PROGRAM?

In short, Cultural Access is a piece of legislation (RCW 36.160) enacted by Washington State to fund cultural non-profits who provide school and public programming AND to provide transportation for school students to get to those programs. Cultural Access is self-sustaining in that the law provides for the costs of managing the program, usually at ten to fifteen percent of the fund’s total.

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Where do Cultural Access funds come from?

A simple one-tenth of one percent addition to local sales tax. Our tax in Gig Harbor is currently 9.1%. With Cultural Access, it would be 9.2%. For folks who shop in Gig Harbor, it’s just ten cents for every $100 spent on non-food items or approximately $3.66 per household per month. We spend more than that on a movie ticket or a cup of coffee.  

 

Who would manage the funds?

State legislation allows for a few options. The simplest is that the enacting city could add a staff member to manage the program, as Tacoma and Olympia have done. Alternatively, a non-receiving non-profit or public authority could manage the distribution of program funds in coordination with a Community Advisory Committee made up of representatives from recipient organizations, the school district, the city council, and other interested community members. Lastly, the legislation names the Washington State Arts Commission as an option for grants management. The city has not yet determined which route they’d prefer, but the Cultural Access Gig Harbor Community Advocacy Committee is prepared to draft guidelines to ethically and judiciously manage the funds if necessary. The precedent for this is called the “Denver Model” where a foundation was established over 30 years ago to manage distribution of public funds to the Denver museums, zoo, and botanical gardens. Now the program serves over 40 different organizations through multiple grant programs.

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What organizations benefit?

Any non-profit organization located in the City of Gig Harbor who regularly provides school and public educational programs in art, science, culture, and/or history as part of their mission. The funds may be used for operating costs, program fees, staffing, and capital improvements to non-municipal buildings used for these programs. Funding allocations can be based on an organization’s annual budget as reported in their most recent 990.

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Why is this program necessary?

While many people think that all our local non-profits are already funded by tax dollars, there’s a lot more to the story. Gig Harbor has a unique model for preservation of historic properties—in many cases, the city buys an historic property then often relies on a local non-profit to step in (or form specifically) to program that city building or site. Sample exceptions are organizations such as the Harbor History Museum who owns their own building, Peninsula Hands-On Art that is affiliated with the School District, and all-volunteer organizations. All of these organizations (and more!) do great work and regularly gather around the application table when it comes to local grant programs. But for organizations that require professional staff and provide award-winning school programs the need for operating funds is very real. With the change in tax laws a few years ago that increased the standard deduction, there’s very little incentive for folks to give if it’s less than $10,000. And, in reality, those less than $10,000 individual contributions make up the vast majority of donations to local non-profits.​

 

One-tenth of one percent doesn’t seem like much. How much would it generate for non-profits in Gig Harbor?

According to similar programs and calculations, the fund would generate approximately $1 million per year. If non-profits were allowed to apply for up to, say, 40% of their annual operating budget and agree to apply those funds to the direct support of their on-site and outreach educational programs, “It’s a game changer,” says Lindsey Johnson, Executive Director of Harbor WildWatch.

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Non-profits across America vary from small, all-volunteer organizations to massive private facilities such as the Getty. While the types and focus of cultural arts non-profits may vary, their baseline funding is only secured in one of three ways: A large endowment that generates enough residual income to provide basic operational support on a yearly basis; Municipal funding through a state, city, or county that provides operating funds and often capital improvement funding as well; and “community funded” in that all operating funds are cobbled together from a variety of sources each year, such as individual contributions, grants, and earned income.

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So, what’s the catch?

Until the most recent state legislative session, Cultural Access had to be approved for the ballot by a municipality, placed on the ballot, and win by a simple majority. Only Tacoma and Olympia have been bold enough to make the journey to the ballot, but they won with significant majorities. Now, the recently passed HB 1575 will allow local city councils to enact Cultural Access via a simple council majority vote. Councilmanic authority is the term, and it grants our city council the opportunity to pass Cultural Access and impose that one-tenth of one percent addition to sales tax for a period of seven years. They still have the option of requiring the measure to go to the ballot and simple majority vote, but they no longer have to. Will they? We don’t yet know.

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When would the funds be available?

Like all levies, there has to be a collection year before there can be distributions. If passed in 2025, funds would be collected in 2026 and distributed in 2027. ​

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What’s next?

With HB 1575 becoming effective as of 7/23/23 our city council now has the opportunity to vote in Cultural Access. If they require it to go to the ballot, it will need to pass by a simple majority vote. Now is the time to let city council know how you feel about the Cultural Access program. Do you want Gig Harbor to be a place where the arts, history, and science thrive and truly have the community support to succeed? It’s up to you.

“People love the sales tax strategy,” says Laurel Turner, a member of the Community Advocacy Committee and non-profit professional. “Because the burden is shared by everyone, both locals and visitors.”

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Manny Cawaling, the Executive Director of InspireWA, says that interest in the Cultural Access program is gaining across the state. It’s supported by the Washington State Arts Commission, and in Olympia, for example, has been paired with the creation of a Creative District. “They are two distinct programs,” says Cawaling. Cultural Access provides much needed program dollars. Creative Districts provide the vibe.

 

What’s Pending? Gig Harbor City Council put Cultural Access in the budget plan for 2025-2026. The council will be discussing the program at their February 28, 2025 retreat. Hopefully they will opt to develop a resolution and ordinance to activate the program this year.