NEA Funds Benefit Both Rich and Poor, Study Finds

House Republicans charge that the National Endowment for the Arts supports programming primarily attended by the rich, causing “a wealth transfer from poorer to wealthier citizens.” A new study challenges that assertion, however, and concludes that federally supported arts programs attract people across the income spectrum; the wealthy, yes, but also many below the poverty line. The study, by the National Center for Arts Research at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, was specifically intended to test lawmakers’ propositions about arts funding.