The Trump administration is aiming to shut down a federal agency that distributes taxpayer money to museums and libraries — including in Austin.

Why it matters: The cultural institutions rely on federal money to meet their mission.

Catch up quick: In a March 14 executive order, President Trump named the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) as one of seven agencies that should be "eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law."

Follow the money: The IMLS' largest program, called Grants to States, disburses roughly $160 million annually to state library agencies, including $12.5 million in fiscal year 2024 to the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC).

• The federal grant makes up a third of the state agency's total budget.
• Per a grant request from the state agency reviewed by Axios, the 2024 money was earmarked for literacy and workforce readiness programs, as well as to help train librarians.

Zoom in: In Austin, the Mexic-Arte Museum was the recipient in 2023 of a three-year grant worth $450,000 to hire an education coordinator and pay college student interns.

What they're saying: "Given today's political climate and escalating tensions, I believe museums and libraries can play a critical role to help ... our communities re-establish common ground and learn to build bridges rather than breed contempt and/or division," Paul Saldaña, president of the museum's board, tells Axios.

Other Austin institutions that have recently benefited from the IMLS include:

• The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health at the University of Texas (which won a $150,000 grant in 2024)
• The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center ($115,000 in 2024)
• And the Texas After Violence Project ($750,000 in 2021), which archives cultural ephemera and other materials from communities impacted by police brutality, mass incarceration and the death penalty, per its website.

The other side: "We will revitalize IMLS and restore focus on patriotism, ensuring we preserve our country's core values, promote American exceptionalism and cultivate love of country in future generations," Keith Sonderling, the acting director of the agency, said in a statement this month.

What the agency's governing board said

More than 32,000 Texans will be affected by President Trump's order that will cease Social Security payments by paper check.

Why it matters: The switch risks disrupting the lives of some of the most vulnerable Americans, at a time when Social Security is cutting back services to help them.

Driving the news: The federal government must stop issuing paper checks by Sept. 30 in favor of direct deposit, prepaid cards, or "other digital payment options," per an order Trump signed this week.

• The move is part of a broader White House effort against what it considers government waste, fraud and abuse.
• The order includes language allowing for "limited exceptions," including for people without bank accounts.

By the numbers: About 32,650 out of a total 4.8 million Texas recipients still receive paper Social Security checks, per Social Security Administration data.

• Nationwide, there's still about 456,000 paper holdouts.

What they're saying: "The continued use of paper-based payments ... imposes unnecessary costs; delays; and risks of fraud, lost payments, theft, and inefficiencies," per Trump's order, adding the cost alone of infrastructure and technology cost $657 million in the last fiscal year.

What's next: Social Security offers instructions on how to switch to direct deposit.

🖼️ The Hope Outdoor Gallery — shut down in 2019 after the Baylor Street land on which it sat was sold to a developer — will reopen this fall near the airport. (KUT)

🏆 The University of Texas won the men's national diving and swimming championships. (Swim Swam)

🚨 The city of Bee Cave and Lake Travis Fire Rescue are proposing a shared $31 million public safety building to handle growing public safety needs. (KVUE)

📚 Also reflecting growth in Austin's suburbs, the Dripping Springs Community Library wants to build a new facility that will be nearly quadruple the size of the current one. (Hays Free Press)

Here's what's on tap this week in ATX.

Monday

🔪 Creep yourself out by watching Psycho II — "It's 22 years later and Norman Bates is coming home" — at the Hyperreal Film Club at 7:30pm. Tickets start at $8.

Tuesday

⚾️ Cheer on the University of Texas baseball team as they face Texas State. 6:30pm at Disch-Falk Field. Tickets start at $7.

Wednesday

🧥 Watch "Brandy Hellville & The Cult of Fast Fashion," a film about fashion and globalization, at the Jones Center, 6-8:30pm. $10 for adults.

Thursday

🎨 Bask in the Golden Hour Tour, an examination of artworks at Laguna Gloria. At 6pm and 7pm. Free.

🎶 Listen to acclaimed singer-songwriter Jason Isbell perform at ACL Live at the Moody Theater, in a three-night stand beginning Thursday at 8pm. Tickets start at $75.

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🐾 Asher here.

I'm cuddling our new dog, a very shy 25-pound terrier mutt from the Austin Animal Center.

Flashback: It's been a year-and-a-half since our last canine, Poppy, died.

• Poppy, short for poppy seed, also from the Austin animal shelter, was a wonderful companion. She was so full of character, and it took us a while — me, especially — to come around to getting another dog.
• Nicole described Poppy as looking like she was shocked by a bolt of lightning. My sister-in-law once said she resembled a German World War I colonel.
• A Chinese dragon, another person said. In her more disreputable moments, she looked like something that had tumbled from the washing machine.

The bottom line: We're still figuring out who our new dog will be, the special pleasures she'll bring us. But to honor the great Poppy, we've decided to call this one Sesame (Sammy as a nickname) — short for sesame seed.