Planned 2026 Financial Plan Proposes Cuts to Institute of Museum and Library Funding
Get Ready for a Shock: IMLS Defunding Proposed in 2026 Federal Budget
Brace yourselves, bookworms and history buffs! The upcoming 2026 federal budget is looking to pull the plug on the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), slashing its budget from a whopping $313 million to a mere $6 million, as per the Book Riot report.
The $6 million allocated will be used solely to wrap up the agency and others in early 2026. Despite the IMLS making up a mere 0.005% of the overall federal budget, its closure is part of a broader move to reconsider the federal government's role in the arts and culture landscape of the United States.
If the budget is approved by Congress, forget about those state grants that help fund public library and museum services issued by the IMLS. The decision for the 2026 fiscal budget is expected to be finalized by October 1.
In a twist of irony, if the IMLS is to survive, Congress will need to reauthorize the Museum and Library Services Act of 2018 by September 30. The act set the IMLS up for success, but its reauthorization is crucial for its continued operation (but it doesn't mean it can't keep functioning as long as there are funds in the budget).
In a bid to halt the IMLS shutdown, legal efforts have been made, including a temporary restraining order issued by a federal judge and a lawsuit filed by 20 attorney generals. However, both the federal budget and the Museum and Library Services Act need to be reinstated by Congress for the IMLS to stay afloat.
Established in 1996, the IMLS is the only federal agency dedicated to aiding museums and libraries across all 50 states and territories.
The move to cut the IMLS has been framed by the Trump administration as a financial responsibility measure, with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) taking the lead in attacking the IMLS. This was soon followed by the appointment of Keith E. Sonderling as acting director of the IMLS, after his stint as the deputy secretary of labor.
In what seems like a déjà vu moment, Elon Musk, who recently left the DOGE, had initially promised to cut at least $2 trillion from federal spending while campaigning for Trump. So far, the DOGE estimates a savings of $175 billion.
Musk has been vocal about his displeasure with the proposed budget, which, in its current state, threatens to add $3.8 trillion to our national debt over the next ten years. "It's like, everything he's done on DOGE gets wiped out in the first year," Musk expressed to CNN.
Although Musk's 130-day special government employee stint was meant to expire around May 30, his mission to restructure the federal government through DOGE continues. Here's hoping for a change in the wind for our libraries and museums!
The proposed defunding of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) in the 2026 federal budget marks a shift in federal policy-and-legislation affecting arts and culture, specifically museums and libraries across the United States. This move, if approved by Congress, could significantly impact general-news related to the arts, such as state grants for public library and museum services that are currently issued by the IMLS.
