Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Editorial: Art deserves better than a swine culture
Support for the arts shouldn't rise and fall with budget forecasts. Consistent funding is needed.
From the RoundTable blog
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Earlier this month Roanoke's mayor and council invited the city's lawmakers to lunch, hoping they'd bite on advancing the city's legislative agenda.
One item of prime importance to city leaders is tapping a uniform, predictable funding stream for arts and culture. Roanoke already sets aside some local funds, but city officials and arts boosters hope that with dedicated state funding, they would no longer need to trek to Richmond, hat-in-hand, begging for money.
So city officials came up with a plan: Allow Roanoke to retain a tiny fraction of its sales tax for the arts. In exchange, the city would promise not to ask for anything more.
The response, best summed up by Sen. John Edwards: Not going to happen. Not this year. Especially not this year. State revenue has tanked.
Nonstate arts, cultural and historic attractions -- the tapestry of Virginia institutions that enrich the quality of life -- won't see one state penny in 2008 if Gov. Tim Kaine's budget proposal stands.
The following year looks slightly better, about $5.8 million for 36 projects, but a far cry from the $37 million divvied up in last year's budget.
Virginia does a shoddy job in supporting the arts. City officials and directors of nonstate entities, which are most of Roanoke's institutions, have to compete first for their lawmaker's attention and then hope that he or she has enough clout to win funding. This method of awarding grants to pet projects leads to questionable pork spending practices.
In fat times, no one seems too unhappy, because there is usually enough to serve up a slab for the many. In lean times, like now, there aren't even scraps to fight over.
Lawmakers will find this year that, even though the table is barren, constituents will still pull up a chair and expect to be served.
Roanoke isn't the only locality wanting dedicated state support. Blacksburg has placed support for its arts district on its legislative agenda.
Without a pork barrel to tap, lawmakers have two choices this term: Ignore the arts or find a creative, sustainable way to support the institutions that they claim to value.
