Regional Council of Puglia – The work of the VI Commission

In the VI Commission the hearings on the state of implementation of the law on musical bands and on the progress of the establishment of the Tito Schipa Foundation

Gang law
The managers of the Culture department of the Puglia Region were asked what stage the implementation of regional law n. 10 of 15 June 2023 on the “Enhancement, promotion and support of Apulian band culture” which amended LR no. 17 of 25 June 2013, especially regarding the possibility for band associations to access the funds provided by law, quantified at 500 thousand euros per year, for three years.
The availability of the expected funds has been postponed from 2023 to 24 due to budget adjustment. In the meantime – explained the manager of the Culture Department – it is necessary to provide the methods and requirements for registration in the inventory of intangible cultural heritage to be “embedded within the digital ecosystem of culture”. We are now working on the preparation of the requirements, which necessarily also imply the acquisition by the band associations of certain forms of legal subjectivity. However, the representatives of the Department clarified, these will not be exclusionary criteria. On the contrary, the Region is also thinking about possible accompaniment and technical support paths for the acquisition of the requirements required for subsequent registration.
The Commission requested an acceleration in order to allow associations to access the contributions provided for by law for 2024.

Tito Schipa Foundation
The Tito Schipa Regional Foundation, established by law 20 months ago, has made no progress. The problem, it was reiterated by the managers of the Culture Department, continues to be that of the previous existence of a provincial Tito Schia foundation and that this foundation seems – although there has not yet been any official communication – to have returned to performing status and could resume operating with Fus funding.
The impasse caused by this aspect has not yet been overcome, although, it was pointed out, possible technical solutions had already been identified in the past, such as the incorporation of the provincial foundation into the regional one.
Also in this case the Commission urged that an operational choice be made quickly.