County commissioners cut Yellowstone Art Museum funding

Funding cuts to the Yellowstone Art Museum (YAM) drew heated outcry at the Yellowstone County commissioners meeting on Tuesday.

But despite those pleas, commissioners voted to move ahead with the cuts.
Watch the heated debate here:

Commissioners cut Yellowstone Art Museum funding

Many angry voices spoke during public comment, with many demanding answers about the huge budget cut to the YAM, which is looking at losing more than $100,000 in county funding compared to last year.

Commissioners stand by the decision, saying they don’t owe the museum anything.

“So you have nonprofit status, yet you stand up here and you would like taxpayers’ money to support you,” said Commissioner Mark Morse, a Republican.

“As the other museums in the museum fund are receiving,” said Jennifer Ogden, YAM executive director.

Other museums are getting county dollars.

“As you know, the chairman got into it, the financial picture of each museum is unique in and of itself,” said Commissioner Mike Waters, also a Republican.

The Yellowstone County Museum needs money for work to improve disability access. The Huntley Project Museum, not a county owned museum, suffered catastrophic hail damage and the Western Heritage Center is county-owned and gets yearly upkeep money,

The YAM has relied on county funding of $220,000 for several years, which went down to $188,000 last year and $50,000 this upcoming year.

Morse says over the last 10 years, the YAM has received $1.8 million.

The county attorney’s office says funding for museums is discretionary.

And commissioners can spend it how they need it and have the authority to reallocate that money,

But others at the meeting disagreed, including Steve Zabawa, attending via video.

He says the commissioners are incorrect and need to approve more money for the museum.

“But it’s just wrong to take money that’s for a specific purpose and reallocate it for a different purpose when it says it right in the law not to do that and not to co-mingle,” said Zabawa. The county has moved the YAM funding into its public-safety budget.

Commissioners say it’s a done deal for this year, and the budget has passed.

“If you don’t have public safety, you’re not going to have an art museum,” said Morse. “You can all laugh. I mean, you all have your chance to come up here, but you can’t argue with figures. If we have to fund $8.9 million, we have to pay that. That’s real money.”