Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Program

CFDA Number: 45-201
Funding Opportunity Number: 2009FCAH01

Introduction

The National Endowment for the Arts administers the U.S. Government's Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Program on behalf of the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities (FCAH). The Indemnity Program was created by Congress in 1975 for the purpose of minimizing the costs of insuring international exhibitions. Since that time, the Program has indemnified nearly 900 exhibitions, saving the organizers more than $230 million in insurance premiums. Please view the list of recently indemnified exhibitions.

Museums and other non-profit organizations planning temporary exhibitions that involve bringing works of art and artifacts from abroad to this country or sending works of art from this country abroad may be eligible for coverage. Details appear below.

The indemnity agreement is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. In the event of loss or damage to an indemnified object, the Federal Council must certify the validity of the claim and request Congress to authorize payment.

Applicant Eligibility

The Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act (P.L. 94-l58) authorizes the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities to make indemnity agreements with non-profit, tax-exempt organizations and governmental units for:

1. Eligible objects from outside the United States while on exhibition in the United States.

2. Eligible objects from the United States while on exhibition outside the U.S., preferably when part of an exchange of exhibitions.

3. Eligible items from the United States while on exhibition in the United States if the exhibition includes other eligible items from outside the United States which are integral to the exhibition as a whole.

If an exhibition is being shown at several institutions, one institution should apply on behalf of all participants. The Federal Council requires that the applicant have previously organized at least one international exhibition.

Object Eligibility

Eligible objects include art works, other artifacts or objects, rare documents, books and other printed materials, photographs, films, and videotapes. Such objects must have educational, cultural, historical, or scientific value, and the exhibition must be certified by the Secretary of State’s designee as being in the national interest.

Note: For reasons of risk, the Federal Council is generally opposed to indemnifying oil on copper paintings, pastels, lacquer objects, certain types of glass (including enamels), works on parchment or vellum, marquetry, frescoes, and other fragile objects. Oversized works and oil on wood panel paintings will be reviewed on a case by case basis. Oil on single wood panels larger than two feet by three feet will not be indemnified. Please see Question 12(c) in the Indemnity Narrative instructions for more information.

Indemnity Limits

The Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act allows coverage for a single exhibition up to $1,200,000,000. The total dollar amount of indemnity agreements which can be in effect at any one time is $10,000,000,000. The deductible amounts follow.

If the value of items covered by an indemnity agreement for a single exhibition is:

1. $2,000,000 or less, then coverage under the Indemnity Act extends only to loss or damage in excess of the first $l5,000 of loss or damage to items covered.

2. More than $2,000,000 but less than $l0,000,000, the first $25,000.

3. Not less than $l0,000,000 but less than $l25,000,000, the first $50,000.

4. Not less than $l25,000,000, but less than $200,000,000, the first $l00,000.

5. Not less than $200,000,000, but less than $300,000,000, the first $200,000.

6. Not less than $300,000,000, but less than $400,000,000, the first $300,000.

7. Not less than $400,000,000, but less than $500,000,000, the first $400,000.

8. $500,000,000 or more, the first $500,000.
   

Application Process

Organizations interested in seeking indemnity must submit an application for review by the Indemnity Advisory Panel and the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities. Announcements of Certificates of Indemnity will be made after the Federal Council has met. If an application or object has been rejected, the applicant may submit a request to the Indemnity Administrator to provide a written response stating the reasons for rejection (please see Contact below).

Please see the full application instructions >> [PDF].

Deadline Dates

The application deadlines are October l, for Certificates of Indemnity that may be issued as early as the following January l; and April l, for Certificates that may be issued as early as the following July l. (The Panel and Council meetings occur approximately one month and two months, respectively, following those deadline dates.) An application should not be submitted more than one year and three months in advance of the indemnity period.

To assist the Panel and Council with long range planning of indemnity allocations, future applicants are encouraged, but not required, to submit preliminary statements about future exhibitions as much as four years in advance of the indemnity period. Updated material may be submitted every six months, as appropriate. Please send all material directly to the Indemnity Administrator (see Contact below).

Credit Requirement

In all published material and announcements concerning this exhibition, the following acknowledgement must appear: "This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities."

Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act and Federal Rules and Regulations

The Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act and the Federal Rules and Regulations may be found at the following link:

Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act and Federal Rules and Regulations >>

Contact

If you have questions about the Indemnity Program, please contact:

Alice M. Whelihan
Indemnity Administrator
National Endowment for the Arts
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20506
telephone: 202-682-5574
fax: 202-682-5603
e-mail: whelihaa@arts.gov

May 2008

National Endowment for the Arts · an independent federal agency
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20506