                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION (§ 23.1-3223)

A. The Commission shall:

   1. Stimulate and encourage throughout the Commonwealth growth in artistic
   quality and excellence, public interest and participation in the arts, and
   access to high-quality and affordable literary, visual, and performing arts
   for all Virginians;

   2. Make recommendations concerning appropriate methods to encourage economic
   viability, an intellectually stimulating environment for artists, and
   participation in and appreciation of the arts to meet the legitimate needs and
   aspirations of persons in all parts of the Commonwealth;

   3. Promote the development and implementation of a planned, sequential, and
   comprehensive program of arts education, taught by licensed teachers endorsed
   in arts education, in the public elementary and secondary schools of the
   Commonwealth;

   4. Provide supplemental learning opportunities to the public school arts
   education curriculum;

   5. Encourage the development of a network of professional arts organizations,
   the media, and arts promoters for the production of classical and new works of
   art and diversity in artistic expressions in media including the literary,
   visual, and performing arts;

   6. Provide funding for and technical assistance to artists, recognized
   nonprofit arts organizations, and arts organizations and activities that
   celebrate and preserve the various cultures represented among the citizens of
   the Commonwealth;

   7. Encourage and support the creation of new works of art, arts organizations
   whose primary objective is to increase public access to the arts, particularly
   in underserved areas, and performing arts tours to increase the availability
   of this form of artistic expression throughout the Commonwealth;

   8. Establish a program of financial assistance to provide scholarships,
   grants, and other awards to artists who demonstrate exceptional ability and
   talent;

   9. Establish an advisory panel composed of artists, arts administrators, and
   citizens to advise the Commission concerning fiscal matters;

   10. Encourage arts organizations to dedicate to their endowments at least $1
   of the price of each adult admission to performances or exhibitions or at
   least one percent of moneys collected in fund campaigns;

   11. Encourage arts organizations to develop and implement endowment
   enlargement plans that yield enough income to underwrite one-third of the
   organizations&#8217; annual operating costs;

   12. Apply to and enter into contracts and agreements with the United States or
   any appropriate agency or officer of the United States for participation in or
   receipt of funding from any federal program respecting the arts;

   13. Provide incentives to local governing bodies to encourage public support
   and funding of the arts;

   14. Accept, hold, and administer gifts, contributions, and bequests of money
   or any other thing to be used for carrying out the purposes of this article;

   15. Develop specific procedures for the administration and implementation of a
   grantmaking program, so long as any such program is for the benefit of a
   nonprofit organization qualifying as a &#xA7; 501(c)(3) organization under the
   Internal Revenue Code and prepare written guidelines to govern such program;

   16. Administer any funds available to the Commission and disburse such funds
   in accordance with the purposes of this article;

   17. Make expenditures from the Fund&#8217;s interest and income to promote the
   arts in the Commonwealth in accordance with &#xA7; 23.1-3228 and assist
   nonprofit arts and cultural institutions and organizations in the Commonwealth
   to assess, enhance, and plan for enhancement of their fiscal stability,
   financial management and control capabilities, and capacity to raise funds for
   the furtherance of their respective missions from nongovernmental sources;

   18. Enter into contracts and execute all instruments necessary and appropriate
   to carry out the Commission&#8217;s purposes;

   19. Explore and make recommendations concerning other possible dedicated
   revenue sources for the Fund; and

   20. Perform any lawful acts necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes
   of the Commission.

B. Nothing in this article shall be construed to affect the statutory purposes
of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

HISTORY: 2016, c. 588; 2022, c. 437.