Editing Metropolitan Museum of Art (section)

==== 2015–2018 setbacks ====
In September 2016, ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' first reported financial set-backs at the museum related to servicing its outstanding debts and associated cut-backs in staffing at the museum, with the goal of trying to balance its budget by fiscal year 2018.<ref>Jennifer Smith, [https://www.wsj.com/articles/metropolitan-museum-of-art-cuts-staff-1475072125 "Metropolitan Museum of Art Cuts Staff"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170329045832/https://www.wsj.com/articles/metropolitan-museum-of-art-cuts-staff-1475072125 |date=March 29, 2017 }}, ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'', September 28, 2016.</ref> According to the Met's annual tax filing for fiscal year 2016, several top executives had received disproportionately high compensation, often exceeding $1&nbsp;million per annum with over $100,000 bonuses per annum.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://news.artnet.com/art-world/met-execs-awarded-bonus-and-raises-894431|title=Met Execs Got Hefty Bonuses Amid-Rising Deficit|last=Kinsella|first=Eileen|date=March 16, 2017|work=artnet News|access-date=May 6, 2017|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170325223837/https://news.artnet.com/art-world/met-execs-awarded-bonus-and-raises-894431|archive-date=March 25, 2017}}</ref>

In April 2017, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that the Met's annual debt was approaching $40&nbsp;million, in addition to an outstanding museum bond for $250&nbsp;million. This resulted in the indefinite postponement of a planned $600&nbsp;million architectural expansion of the exhibition space for the museum's modern art collection as well as started a general discussion over the Met's [[human resources management]].<ref name="Pogrebin-2017a">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/02/arts/design/met-museum-campbell-resignation-brodsky-coburn.html |url-access=subscription |title=A Hushed Departure at the Met Museum Reveals Entrenched Management Culture|last=Pogrebin|first=Robin|date=April 2, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 6, 2017|issn=0362-4331|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414145243/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/02/arts/design/met-museum-campbell-resignation-brodsky-coburn.html|archive-date=April 14, 2017}}</ref> The chairman of the board at the Met elected in 2011, [[Real Estate Board of New York|Daniel Brodsky]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/11/arts/design/daniel-brodsky-is-voted-chairman-of-metropolitan-museum.html |url-access=subscription |title=Daniel Brodsky is Voted Chairman of the Metropolitan Museum of Art|last=Taylor|first=Kate|date=May 5, 2011|work=The New York Times|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314074207/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/11/arts/design/daniel-brodsky-is-voted-chairman-of-metropolitan-museum.html|archive-date=March 14, 2017}}</ref> stated in response to the ''Times'' reports that he "looked forward to working with my administrative and board colleagues to support a climate of candor, transparency, accountability and mutual respect".<ref name="Pogrebin-2017a" /> In January 2018, Daniel Weiss as president of the museum stated that a downsized version of the original $600&nbsp;million architectural expansion might be reconsidered as early as 2020 at a reduction to the $450&nbsp;million level.<ref name="nypogrebin"/>

Brodsky, the chairman of the Met, stated that after the 2017 financial setbacks, the director position would be appointed separately from the position of CEO. Following a commissioned report from the [[Boston Consulting Group]], the interim CEO, president, and [[Chief Operating Officer|COO]] of the Met, [[Daniel Weiss (art historian)|Daniel Weiss]], said that the Met's 2015–2017 financial setbacks were caused by "slowing revenue, rising costs, and too many projects at once". Weiss was further reported as having hired Will Manzer, formerly an executive at [[Perry Ellis (brand)|Perry Ellis]], to help re-invigorate recently declining revenues at the museum.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.vulture.com/2017/04/what-broke-the-met-museum.html |url-access=subscription |title=With Rumors, Scandal, and a Record Budget Shortfall, What Broke the Met?|last=Kachka|first=Boris|date=April 16, 2017|work=Vulture|access-date=May 6, 2017|publisher=[[New York (magazine)|New York Magazine]]|pages=44–50|language=en|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170501102836/http://www.vulture.com/2017/04/what-broke-the-met-museum.html|archive-date=May 1, 2017}}</ref> On April 26, Weiss stated that the budget shortfall of $15&nbsp;million might require a re-assessment and increase in the museum's current admission payment policy. Weiss added that there remained concerns for a sustainable fiscal model for the Met in which city officials "have a right to a clear understanding of how we would be engaging the public, how we balance access with sustainability".<ref name="nyt20170426">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/26/arts/design/met-museum-in-quiet-talks-with-city-weighs-an-admission-fee.html|title=Visit to the Met Could Cost You, if You Don't Live in New York|last=Pogrebin|first=Robin|date=April 26, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 6, 2017|issn=0362-4331|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506225037/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/26/arts/design/met-museum-in-quiet-talks-with-city-weighs-an-admission-fee.html|archive-date=May 6, 2017}}</ref> In May 2017, the Met filed formal proposal to attempt to charge admission fees to out-of-state visitors.<ref name="Pogrebin-2017b" /> [[Robin Pogrebin]], writing for the ''Times,'' reported that the request for out-of-state admissions would call for the re-legislation of the New York State 1893 Act which requires that the museum's collections "shall be kept open and accessible to the public free of all charge throughout the year", and any unlegislated changes would be subject to challenge by the New York State attorney general, [[Eric Schneiderman]], or one of the tristate counselors, [[Christopher Porrino]] or [[George Jepsen]].<ref name="Pogrebin-2017b">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/arts/design/the-metropolitcan-museum-of-art-admission-fees-tickets-de-blasio.html |url-access=subscription |title=The Met Files a Formal Proposal to Charge Admission to Out-of-State Visitors|last=Pogrebin|first=Robin|date=May 5, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 6, 2017|issn=0362-4331|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506050919/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/arts/design/the-metropolitcan-museum-of-art-admission-fees-tickets-de-blasio.html|archive-date=May 6, 2017}}</ref>

In January 2018, Pogrebin writing for ''The New York Times'' reported that amid-continuing reverberations from "a period of financial turbulence and leadership turmoil" that the museum president Daniel Weiss had announced that the museum would rescind its century-old policy of free admission to the museum and begin charging $25 for out-of-state visitors starting in March 2018.<ref name="nypogrebin"/> Pogrebin stated that although the museum had made progress in decreasing its deficit from $40&nbsp;million to $10&nbsp;million, that an adverse decision from the City of New York to curtail funding for the Met's operating costs by as much as $8&nbsp;million "for security and building staff" caused Weiss to announce the change in admissions policy. Weiss indicated that the new policy would be estimated to increase revenue from the current $43&nbsp;million it receives from admissions to an enhanced revenue stream as high as US$49&nbsp;million.<ref name="nypogrebin"/>