California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 124

Introduced by Assembly Member Calderon

(Coauthors: Senators Allen and Nielsen)

January 21, 2016

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 124—Relative to the Arts Council.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

ACR 124, as introduced, Calderon. Arts Council: 40th anniversary.

This measure would declare the importance of the arts to the state and the essential role of the Arts Council in promoting the arts throughout the state, and would congratulate the Arts Council on 40 years of service to state and honor the Art Council’s rich history and celebrate a bright future for the arts in our state.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, Our state arts agency, the California Arts Council,
was established by Governor Edmund G. Brown and came into
being on January 1, 1976; and

WHEREAS, Governor Brown created the California Arts
Council on the basis that the arts are central to the lives of
Californians; and

WHEREAS, Since the 1970s, the Arts Council, also known as
the California Arts Council, has served the state by strategically
promoting increased access to the arts for all Californians,
particularly for residents living in communities that lack sufficient
and convenient opportunities to experience the benefits of the arts
in their lives; and

WHEREAS, In 2016, California’s state arts agency celebrates
its 40th anniversary. During its four decades of existence, the
California Arts Council has awarded thousands of grants with a
total investment of $368,000,000. California is home to more artists
than any other state, and the creative industries account for one in
10 jobs statewide; and

WHEREAS, The arts are fundamental to our human experience.
The arts inspire us to see our human potential by fostering
creativity, goodness, and beauty. The arts help us express our
values, build bridges between cultures, and bring people together,
regardless of perceived differences in ethnicity, religion, or age.
As a well-known idiom reminds us, “When times are tough, art is
salve for the ache”; and

WHEREAS, The arts invigorate the state and national
economies. The creative sector has become one of the state’s most
important drivers of economic growth. The 2013 OTIS Report on
the Creative Economy, analyzing the economic impact of the
creative economy in the state, concluded that 9.7 percent of jobs
in the state are connected, directly or indirectly, to the creative
industries. A recent report by the U.S. Bureau of Economic
Analysis concluded that the arts and culture sector represents 3.2
percent of the nation’s gross domestic product in 2011; and

WHEREAS, The arts bolster small and large businesses and the
nonprofit sector. Local merchants directly benefit when people
attend art events in their community because attendees make
purchases related to the event, including, among other things, meals
and parking. Nationally, in 2011, exports from the United States
of art-related goods, including, but not limited to, movies,
paintings, and jewelry, substantially increased and resulted in a
trade surplus within the arts industry. The national nonprofit arts
industry annually generates billions in economic activity and
provides millions of jobs; and

WHEREAS, The arts increase tourism and travel. Arts travelers
are ideal tourists, staying longer and spending more to seek out
authentic cultural experiences than other types of travelers. Reports
show that the percentage of international travelers visiting museums
and attending concerts and theater performances has steadily grown
since 2003; and

WHEREAS, The arts spark creativity and innovation in the
workforce. Creativity is recognized as one of the top five applied
employee skills sought by business leaders. Nobel Laureates in
the sciences are 17 times more likely to be actively engaged in the
arts than other scientists; and

WHEREAS, The arts enhance our society. A recent study
demonstrated that a high concentration of the arts in a city leads
to higher civic engagement, more social cohesion, improved child
welfare, and lower poverty rates. A vibrant arts community ensures
that young people are not left to experience their society through
a pop culture and tabloid marketplace; and

WHEREAS, The arts improve health care. Nearly one-half of
the nation’s health care institutions provide arts programming for
patients, families, and staff on the basis that art programs promote
healing in patients, resulting in shorter hospital stays, better pain
management, and less medication; and

WHEREAS, The arts improve academic performance. Students
with an education rich in the arts have higher grades and
standardized test scores and lower rates of dropping out of school.
Students with four years of arts or music in high school average
100 more points on their SAT scores than students with just
one-half of a year of arts or music. While arts education is
mandated by state law, California is failing to provide a sufficient
arts education. For the past 30 years arts education in schools has
been disappearing at an alarming rate. Between 1999 and 2004,
student enrollment in music education declined by almost half.
The state’s recent fiscal crisis has resulted in still more dramatic
cuts to visual and performing arts education programs for students
throughout the state; and

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate
thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares the importance
of the arts to the state and the essential role of the Arts Council in
promoting the arts throughout the state; and be it further

Resolved, That the Legislature joins arts supporters from around
the state to congratulate the Arts Council on 40 years of service
to the state and its residents and to honor the Arts Council’s rich
history and celebrate a bright future for the arts in our state; and
be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit
sufficient copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate
distribution.