June 24, 2009 ADVOCACY UPDATE! Happy summer... have you made your Conference plans yet?!
I would like to mention again how pleased we were to welcome our strategic partners Ontario Historical Society and the Ontario Association of Art Galleries to our Queen's Park initiative - and thanks again to all of you for your support and enthusiasm.
The OMA's successful day of talks at Queen's Park has ensured that Ontario community museums are currently high-profile with the provincial government, with the rallying theme: Ontario museums are crucial to the future of successful Ontario communities.
As we move forward, I invite you to continue to stay involved in this important movement and message... and Conference 2009 is the perfect place to start!
So mark October 21-23 on your calendar, and begin now to make your Conference plans. I feel certain that you will find much to engage you and to inspire your own efforts to become an integral part of your own local community.
Now here's an update on issues of concern to our sector:
HST/SST
Since the province announced federal and provincial tax harmonization in the spring budget, quite a few museums told us that the Single Sales Tax (SST) will bring both financial and administrative burden to their institutions. Both our cultural and tourism sector colleagues are also worried about the impact of the SST on their operations.
The OMA will be meeting with new Minister of Revenue John Wilkinson's Parliamentary Assistant Yasir Naqvi and other Ministry staff in July so that we can better understand the application and impact of these taxes. We have also just learned that a representative of the Ministry of Revenue will be at the OMA Conference this fall.
Also at the conference, be sure to attend a special session on the SST, led by financial cultural expert Heather Young and accountant Michael Herrera, who are developing a template to help cultural institutions assess the impact of SST on their bottom line. Both Heather and Michael are well known to the museum community having worked with the OMA and with the CMOG Snapshot and research. We join other cultural sector organizations, with lead contact Orchestras Canada, who are working to develop a better understanding of how SST will affect our members.
In the interim, please let us know if you have received any tax advice on this issue.
CMOG
The OMA Council and President Tammy Adkin wrote to our Minister of Culture, the Honourable Aileen Carroll, urging notification of CMOG funding to recipients no later than September; avoiding the serious delays experienced last year. Timely notification and release of the grants will certainly help museums with their planning.
Members will recall the unanimous motion carried at the OMA's 2008 AGM, requesting that the Ministry of Culture provide an update on the results of CMOG annual grants since the publication of the CMOG Snapshot ended with 2004. The OMA recently received a draft and preliminary review of 2007 CMOG information, at a meeting with Ministry of Culture staff responsible for museums and heritage. We are currently reviewing the information, and will coordinate the release to the community in the next month. The OMA agreed to continue working with the Ministry to improve the program and application process.
Recognizing that the CMOG program is the primary source of information on Ontario museums (and also that no additional reporting burden can be placed on Ontario museums); the Association and Ministry will be engaged in discussions over the summer on what is desirable data collection for the benefit of Ontario museums. Advocacy Chair and OMA Treasurer Gilles Seguin is leading the discussion for the OMA.
Museums and Technology Fund
Another great May is Museum Month announcement came when Minister of Culture Aileen Carroll announced $6.5 million over the next four years for museums and technology. Ms Carroll made the announcement at the Brant Museum and Archives with MPP Dave Levac at her side. We anticipate that the Museum and Tech Fund will allow collections-based heritage organizations using technology to create greater access to collections and artifacts, and to develop innovative uses of technology for the web, marketing, audience development, and revenue development. The Museums and Tech Fund will likely require matching funding and be capped at fifty thousand per project, with possible exceptions for multiple partner applications. Hardware and software purchases and related labour costs could be eligible. Program staff is to be hired in the coming weeks, and program materials will most probably be released later this summer.
The Association is in discussion with the Ministry to ensure that this first-time funding designated for museums will be responsive to sector needs and better position Ontario's museums within a creative economy, moving forward with digital technology and its applications.
Again, please forward your comments on this Fund for Council and staff consideration.
RST Update
The OMA recently met with Wayne Arthurs, PA to the Finance Minister, and Minister Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Education, to again request that museums be considered for an exemption from the Retail Sales Tax. We have recently learned that although our sector's needs will be taken into consideration, we cannot expect a change in the near future.
Enjoy the summer,
Marie Lalonde
Executive Director, Ontario Museum Association
Marie Lalonde
Ontario Museum Association
oma@museumsontario.com
416-348-8672
or toll-free in Ontario 1-866-OMA-8672 |