The Upper Austrian Cultural Promotion Act (Oö. Kulturförderungsgesetz) adopted in 2011, is the comprehensive legal framework for culture promotion and protection of cultural heritage.
The law recognises the importance that culture plays for the quality of life and deems it essential for a “menschenwürdiges Dasein” (dignified existence).
The independence and freedom of the individual on the one hand, and the necessity of interrelationships and dialogue on the other, are considered the basic conditions for culture to strive.
The Act gives special priority to contemporary creation and new forms of cultural life. Such a focus results from the importance of culture as an intellectual driving force and as a representative witness of the creative quality of a historical period and from the endeavour to make it easier for creative artists to realise cultural projects. In addition, cultural promotion is considered to lie as well on the commitment to preserve traditional cultural assets.
On the level of inclusivity, the law considers that cultural promotion should include needs-orientated cultural mediation as well as the promotion of minorities and disadvantaged groups in order to enable as many population groups and classes as possible to actively participate in cultural life.
The goals (paragraph 1) the law aims to achieve are: a) promotion of cultural activities in the interest of Upper Austria, b) promotion and support for the participation in the cultural life of the community, c) support the contemporary arts and the development of new forms of cultural life, d) protection of cultural heritage, e) improve the self-development of the personality through creative activity.
On a general level, the Act outlines various forms of support, such as financial assistance, organisational aid, and infrastructure provision. It emphasises the independence and freedom of cultural expression and requires municipalities to align their local cultural promotion efforts with state guidelines. The Act also mandates regular reporting on funding activities and encourages international cultural exchange.
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