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Monday, November 2, 2009

Performance art: Your stimulus money at work

The Union Leader argues that federal stimulus money would have been better used to fill in the state's budget hole than to subsidize arts programs.
So when the state recently received news that it would get $293,100 in federal stimulus money earmarked specifically to "save or create" jobs, where did it go? To arts programs, of course.

The New Hampshire Arts Council announced last week that the state will use the money to preserve 42 arts jobs (a highly questionable figure).

Among the jobs subsidized by this taxpayer money are: pianist educator, exhibition gallery assistant manager, bookkeeper, gallery manager, artistic director and office assistant. Also subsidized are eight visual artists and 16 performing artists.

The editorial points out that the money was earmarked for the arts by the NEA, and the state had no authority to transfer the cash to higher priorities.

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