Debbie Dingell: “for less than 38 cents a year, each American supports a program which benefits our country culturally, educationally…”

“for less than 38 cents a year, each American supports a program which benefits our country culturally, educationally, and economically. Since its creation over 30 years ago by President Johnson, the National Endowment for the Arts has more than proven its value. Today, I would like to stress the importance of the NEA, and urge that my colleagues vote to save it. Balancing the budget is a goal that we all share, and we are on the right road to achieving that goal. We have all worked hard, as has President Clinton, to bring more fiscal order to our house by eliminating unnecessary programs and wasteful bureaucracy. Earlier this week, the Washington Post reported, as did newspapers across the country, that even without cutting additional governmental programs, our budget could well be balanced by 1998. Mr. Chairman, at a time when we struggle to balance the Federal budget many of my colleagues have targeted the NEA as a program which could, and should, be eliminated. However, even if the NEA was eliminated, it would do little to balance our budget, as the NEA accounts for less than one-hundredth of 1 percent of the budget. We spend more on military bands each year than on the NEA. Furthermore, a $99 million Federal investment in the NEA yielded a $3.4 billion return to the Treasury in taxes from the arts.”