National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) funding is at risk in New Mexico. NEH provides grants to museums, historic sites, colleges, independent scholars, and to its humanities council affiliates in each of the nation’s 56 states and jurisdictions. New Mexico received $9.89 million in NEH funding from 2020-2024.
In a statement yesterday, the National Humanities Alliance said:
On Monday, March 31, 2025 we learned that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is targeting the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) with the aim of substantially reducing its staff, cutting the agency’s grant programs, and rescinding grants that have already been awarded. DOGE is targeting a small federal agency that—with an annual appropriation that amounts to a rounding error in the U.S. budget— has a positive impact on every congressional district.
Cutting NEH funding directly harms communities in every state and contributes to the destruction of our shared cultural heritage. Cutting NEH staff who bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to their positions guts the NEH itself. This puts unnecessary barriers in the way of the agency’s mission to distribute federal dollars to American communities.
According to NEH’s own fact sheet, these cuts will have a direct impact on people in New Mexico.
Staff are preparing for a substantial reduction in force. There are indications that a significant number of the agency’s staff may be terminated out of an already lean team. It is unclear what will happen to grantees that have already been awarded money, or if new awards will be made.
Over the past four years, NEH has supported thousands of projects nationwide. More about the NEH can be found at https://www.neh.gov/
Local funding for research and public programs at risk