In 2004, the museum was again closed for renovation.
Its uncertain future and deteriorating condition led the National Trust for Historic Preservation to name it in 2006 as one of America's Most Endangered Places, an annual list of endangered historic sites.
In 2009 it was scheduled to receive $25 million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for renovation work.

The exhibits were removed.
 Revitalization of the shell alone was solicited in 2010.
A complete restoration was projected to cost $200 million ($65 million in structural renovations alone) and last until the year 2014.
It has also been discussed as a possible site for a national Latino American museum.
In January 2014, the Smithsonian announced that the building would remain closed for the foreseeable future, citing funding concerns.
But on April 12, 2015, Smithsonian Acting Secretary Albert Horvath said about 40 percent of the building would reopen in fall 2015 for use as a short-term exhibit space.
 Smithsonian officials said that the building had been architecturally stabilized, and minor refurbishments made to the bathrooms, HVAC system, and interior paint scheme.
Horvath said the building would not completely reopen.
He said that plans for a proposed National Museum of the American Latino remained in limbo, and that the Smithsonian had purposefully declined to include the Arts and Industries Building in its new master plan because the structure's fate had not yet been clarified or determined.
In 2004, the museum was again closed for renovation. Its uncertain future and deteriorating condition led the National Trust for Historic Preservation to name it in 2006 as one of America's Most Endangered Places, an annual list of endangered historic sites. In 2009 it was scheduled to receive $25 million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for renovation work.
The exhibits were removed.  Revitalization of the shell alone was solicited in 2010. A complete restoration was projected to cost $200 million ($65 million in structural renovations alone) and last until the year 2014. It has also been discussed as a possible site for a national Latino American museum. In January 2014, the Smithsonian announced that the building would remain closed for the foreseeable future, citing funding concerns. But on April 12, 2015, Smithsonian Acting Secretary Albert Horvath said about 40 percent of the building would reopen in fall 2015 for use as a short-term exhibit space.  Smithsonian officials said that the building had been architecturally stabilized, and minor refurbishments made to the bathrooms, HVAC system, and interior paint scheme. Horvath said the building would not completely reopen. He said that plans for a proposed National Museum of the American Latino remained in limbo, and that the Smithsonian had purposefully declined to include the Arts and Industries Building in its new master plan because the structure's fate had not yet been clarified or determined.
Arts and Industries Building