How is the Smithsonian Institution funded?
Federal appropriations cover about 70 cents of every dollar needed by the Smithsonian. Federal support conserves the Smithsonian’s national collections, sustains basic research, educates the public, operates, maintains, and protects the large Smithsonian museum and research complex, and provides other administrative and support services. Private philanthropy bridges the gap between the Federal resources the Smithsonian receives and what it needs to carry out innovative research, expand its national collections, build new facilities, open truly 21st-century exhibitions and expand educational outreach to school-aged children.
