Asa Hutchinson: “Governor Huckabee wrote, ``As a State, we have a need for the continued support of developing art talents, as well as…”

“Governor Huckabee wrote, ``As a State, we have a need for the continued support of developing art talents, as well as making the arts available to the public.'' Then Governor Huckabee went on to state that he ``believes States have a better understanding of their needs and a much closer relationship with our constituents at the State level than a bureaucracy in Washington.'' I think what Governor Huckabee said would be echoed by Governors-- both Democrat and Republican--all across this country; that, if they could receive those funds directly, have control over them, be able to make the decisions as to where those grants should go, we will have a more productive arts community in each one of our States. Mr. President, it becomes increasingly harder to justify the existence of the National Endowment for the Arts' Washington bureaucracy when one takes a more careful look at the overhead and the salary costs of this agency. For example, from 1994 to 1996, the administrative costs of the National Endowment for the Arts went from a little over 14 percent in 1994, 14.4 percent, to almost 19 percent in 1996, at a time when the agency was cut by 39 percent, and was faced with a loss of 89 positions. The administrative costs amount to almost 20 cents on the dollar.…”