What are some general tips and advice for prospective applicants?
1. If your project tours to or takes place in multiple city council districts, then you should consider asking DCA to fund 50% *of your locations and strategize (by talking with the DCA staff) on which districts have been historically least served by former DCA applicants.
2. Be thoughtful about which Council District boxes you select in your proposal. Please note that if your project is sited within 5 or more districts, your selection will indicate which districts are served with DCA funding, while others can be served with matching funds. Please be reminded that if you are awarded a contract based on this proposal, your services cannot include new districts or changed districts.
3. Projects that cannot estimate 60% of the local artists (national and international artists are acceptable as long as they do not comprise more than 40% of the total project proposed) and arts managers, who will be paid to produce and present a specific number of thematic services, are not ready to be proposed.
4. Including 20% of overhead business expenses is very acceptable for every artistic project proposal. By naming the theme, site, and relative dates of your activities will help you determine what expenses are truly needed to stabilize your progress in advance of the free or low-costs and publicly accessible activities which are the entire focus of your application narrative.
5. Our application allows for answers with limited word counts, so we do NOT recommend asking for support of more than 2 projects in your singular proposal. If you do decide to ask for support of Project A and Project B, please be aware that DCA panelist will select whichever they prefer and rarely tell DCA to fund elements of both.
6. The cost-per-head ratio between your financial request and the number of people served will determine how deep your narrative must speak to “level of change” in your participants+audience. DCA wants to support a variety of artistic projects — some of which will be wide and low cost (like a $20 movie ticket) and some of which will be deep and moderate cost (such as $50 per person activity) for a project with an average of $200 per person investment in deep sequential and transformative learning for a target population that needs a city sponsored program to develop equitable outcomes (except for the outdoor festivals category). The depth of change you create in the life of an example-participant from one or more prior year(s) of the same project, is the best way to justify a high cost-per-head-ratio.
Do we need to attend a webinar or in-person workshop?
No. However, DCA staff strongly recommends you view or participate in a webinar every other year, even if you have received City grants in prior years as DCA’s guidelines, applications forms, and instructions are adjusted each year. Applicants who are entirely new are especially encouraged to attend an in-person workshop, as these sessions involve detailed discussions of the grant program’s framework, requirements, priorities, and application process.
How do we determine the City of Los Angeles council district location of our headquarters or our project site(s)?
Please use the following link to the City of Los Angeles Neighborhood Information search engine to verify the council district location of a specific address: Neighborhood information link.
Please use the following link for maps of the City of Los Angeles: Council district maps.
Where does the Department of Cultural Affairs Cultural Grant Program get its money?
The income source for the Grant Program is an equivalent of up to 1% of the Tourist Occupancy Tax (TOT), a tax on local hotels and/or 1% of development fees on commercial construction greater than $500,000.
I represent an organization that has filed with the IRS for, but not yet received, its status as a nonprofit arts organization. Are we still eligible to apply?
No. You must have your 501(c)3 nonprofit status before you apply. The Internal Revenue Service will send you a letter informing you of this status. A copy of this nonprofit certification letter must be submitted with your application.
As an organization, will we have to apply separately for a Business Tax Registration Certificate (BTRC) Number?
Yes. A 501(c)3 designation is not the only certification the City requires. If you are granted an award, you will be instructed at your contract appointment to file for a BTRC number before you begin your project.
How much money can our organization request?
Each program category has its own request amount parameters. Please refer to Grant Amounts.
When will I find out if I have received a grant?
Refer to the timeline.
With the applications for this grant, when is the earliest I can start my project?
July 1, 2024
What do I need to know in advance about payment?
Cultural Grants are reimbursement monies. DCA can only offer 50% or 75% for planned expenses depending on the grant type and City controller approval. The remaining/final amount of the grant will be paid approximately 45 days after submission and approval of final narrative and financial reports. An organization must be prepared to leverage its project with matching funds as well as provide timely and complete invoices to DCA of real expenses and wait at least sixty days for city checks to be processed.