SAA’s Response: Provincial Budget 2026-27
Budget 2026-27 includes important cultural investments, but leaves core arts funding frozen
Saskatchewan Arts Alliance says targeted investments are welcome, but the broader arts and culture sector still lacks the stable, indexed support it needs
March 18, 2026
The Saskatchewan Arts Alliance welcomes the Government of Saskatchewan’s decision to maintain funding for key arts and culture lines in Budget 2026-27, including SK Arts. In a year when many in the sector feared direct cuts, that matters.
This year’s budget also includes meaningful targeted investments within the Ministry of Parks, Culture and Sport. Overall ministry appropriation rises from $100.5 million to $116.7 million, and the ministry describes its strategic focus as “quality of life and economic growth” while working to enhance Saskatchewan’s cultural, artistic, recreational and social life.
We particularly recognize the significant increase for the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, which rises from $5.8 million to $19.8 million. This is an important investment. At the same time, the estimates show that much of this increase is tied to capital asset acquisitions, which rise from $2.7 million to $16.7 million.
The Active Families Benefit also increases significantly, from $3.9 million to $7.9 million, a welcome measure that can help improve access to arts, culture, and recreation for Saskatchewan families. The Community Initiatives Fund increased modestly from $8.5 million to $8.8 million.
What remains missing is stronger operating support for the broader arts and culture sector across Saskatchewan.
Several core cultural lines remain flat. Saskatchewan Arts Board, known publicly as SK Arts, remains at $6.9 million. Heritage Institutions and the Saskatchewan Science Centre remain at $5.6 million. Community Sport, Culture and Recreation Programs remain at $8.5 million.
Creative Saskatchewan appears lower on paper this year, declining from $16.1 million to $12.1 million. Further discussion with Creative Saskatchewan indicates that prior-year carryover may mean its practical operating position is closer to status quo than the line item suggests. When clarification from Creative Saskatchewan is provided to the SAA, we will update the details accordingly.
SK Arts is the clearest example of why status quo funding does not equal sustainability and stability. With Saskatchewan CPI up 1.8% year over year in January 2026, maintaining the real value of last year’s SK Arts allocation would require about $7 million this year. At $6.9 million, the current allocation represents a real shortfall of roughly $123,822.
The longer pattern is more concerning. A decade ago, in 2016, SK Arts received $7.4 million. If that funding had simply kept pace with inflation, it would be about $9.5 million today. Instead, it remains at $6.9 million, about $2.6 million below inflation-adjusted parity. In practical terms, today’s funding has the buying power of only about $5.4 million in 2016 dollars.
The government has already recognized the value of stability and predictability elsewhere in this budget. In his address, the Minister announced a new multi-year funding agreement for post-secondary institutions, including annual 3% increases to operating funding over four years, explicitly framing that decision as necessary for stability and predictability. Saskatchewan’s arts and culture sector deserves that same logic.
The government framed this budget around “Protecting Saskatchewan.” In his address, the Minister of Finance said the government chose to “protect Saskatchewan,” pointed to more than 60 large-scale projects worth over $60.0 billion, and linked those investments to growth, jobs, and making Saskatchewan the best place to live in Canada.
If the province wants to protect Saskatchewan, it must also protect the cultural life that helps make communities livable, connected, and worth staying in.
New Canadian research helps make that case clearer. The 2026 Arts Vibrancy Index, produced by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Business Data Lab for Business / Arts, measures the relationship between arts and culture and economic growth across 22 Canadian communities. This research identifies culture, belonging, and arts participation as factors that help communities attract and retain people. Regina ranks 6th overall, and Saskatoon ranks 8th in that national comparison.
Saskatchewan people value this sector. SAA’s recent province-wide public opinion research found that 74% of respondents believe arts and culture are important to life in Saskatchewan; 84% say they improve the local community; 80% say they help bring people together, and 86% say the government should maintain or increase support for the arts.
At the same time, the public is telling us that access is a barrier. 81% of respondents said affordability limits their ability to engage with arts and culture. This is one reason the significant increase to the Active Families Benefit is welcome. However, access measures must be matched by investment in the sector itself: without sustained support for artists and organizations, there will be fewer opportunities left to access.
It must also be noted that, in addition to the social benefits, public investment in the arts delivers strong economic returns. According to the most recent StatsCan data (2023), in Saskatchewan, arts and culture support approximately 20,000 jobs, contribute $2.2 billion in GDP, and generate $216 million in tax revenue. More specifically, SAA’s 2023 economic impact work found that SK Arts-funded organizations generated $74 million in economic output within Saskatchewan.
Today’s budget avoided the damage of direct cuts to SK Arts. That is important, but status quo funding is not meaningful protection when inflation continues to reduce what those dollars can actually support.
If the government wants to protect Saskatchewan, it must also protect the cultural life of this province by committing to predictable, indexed increases for SK Arts and sustained investment across the broader arts and culture sector.
2026–27 Arts and Culture Related Estimates with Comparisons to 2024–25 Estimates
Sources and further information:
Perspectives on the Arts & Culture Scene in Saskatchewan 2025
Government of Saskatchewan CPI dashboard
Bank of Canada Inflation Calculator
