Advocacy Alert
Meeting with Minister Di Cocco, OMA requests
$5 million for CMOG
**don't forget to complete survey, linked below
Toronto, September 14, 2006: The OMA met with Minister Di Cocco
last Friday to present the Association’s recommendation to
increase the provincial CMOG funding by $ 5 million to close the
gap between what recipients currently receive and what the Ontario
Heritage Act, regulation 877 funding formula stipulates museums
should receive based on eligible expenses.
The OMA also recommended an additional allowance of $ 5 million
for the more than 200 Ontario museums which are currently excluded
from the CMOG program. The total recommendation is for $ 10 million
of increased provincial support for the museums of Ontario.
At the meeting, Minister Di Cocco, confirmed her belief in the
vital role that museums play in education, cultural tourism and
in the community. The Minister emphasized the need for museums to
continue their work on increasing their relevance within their communities.
She assured the Association that the Ministry would have a quicker
turnaround for the CMOG grants and said that there would be multiple
year funding commitments.
The Minister also made the point that your letters and requests
for increased funding have been received and have brought attention
to the CMOG program shortfall. However, when discussing the OMA’s
recommendation to close the funding gap with $ 5 million, she stopped
just short of making a commitment saying that although she is in
favour of the request, she cannot make a “commitment”
at this time considering the competing interests before her Ministry
and before the Ontario government as a whole. She emphasized that
she is only “one voice” at the Cabinet table.
Clearly, Ontario museums must continue to be heard and make their
case for more provincial support to local MPP’s, City Councils
and regional governments, and other community stakeholders and partners
in every corner of the province. We must work to bring our recommendation
for more provincial support to the fore and raise awareness of the
vulnerability of our sector if its sustainability is not addressed.
The OMA awareness campaign does have as an important component the
objective of meeting with each of the Cabinet Ministers to make
the museum sector’s case heard. Minister Di Cocco stated that
she is convinced but museums and the communities they serve must
continue to bring forth the message of an urgent need for funding
and its implications.
The OMA reiterated that museums have been required to meet new
Museum Standards but without accompanying funding support. It was
also brought forward to the Minister that museums need increased
resources and support to preserve our collections for the benefit
of each and every Ontarian, to be able to conduct research, work
with and care for our collections, to deliver dynamic programming
and engaging exhibits, and to contribute fully to the progress of
our province.
The OMA’s call to action is still relevant and urgent. Please
use the Postcards provided by the Association “ It’s
Time: Support Ontario’s Museums”. Have the postcards
filled out by your visitors, friends, Board members, donors, volunteers
and staff; all the constituents who support your museum. Remember
to keep the completed postcards at your site, and mail them yourself
directly to Minister Di Cocco, or to the OMA who will forward them.
Keep track of your numbers.
Better yet, make an appointment with your MPP to make your case
for increased CMOG funding and ask that your MPP deliver the postcards
to Minister Di Cocco him/herself. (See website for Postcard Campaign.)
In addition to all this, the OMA is continuing its research into
Ontario museum needs, for presentation at the OMA conference in
October and to strengthen our business case for more funding. That
initiative includes an online survey that all Ontario museums are
asked to fill out. This survey will assist the Association in identifying
the more pressing issues for our member museums and our sector,
and provide an overview of the current state of Ontario’s
museums. Please help us help you by going to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=832042559855
and completing the survey now. It will only take a few minutes of
your time. Data from this survey is confidential, and will only
be used in aggregate.
Please participate and join in as we continue to mobilize for an
increase in provincial support to museums. Speak up and make a difference!
Contact:
Marie G. Lalonde
Executive Director
mlalonde@museumsontario.com
416-348-8672 or toll-free in Ontario 1-866-OMA-8672
|
