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24%u201cThe governor has, in the past, zeroed out arts funding in his proposed budget but has never vetoed (all of the arts funding) in the budget presented to him by the legislature,%u201d said Phillip Dunlap, director of the Broward Cultural Division, adding that state arts funding was severely cut in the wake of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas school shooting and back-to-back hurricanes to divert more funds to school safety and hurricane response.%u201cEven in that instance, it was the legislature that cut the budgets, not the governor through a veto,%u201d said Dunlap.Arts Boosts Florida%u2019s EconomyFacts back up that arts and culture are a major contributing industry to the state%u2019s economy.%u00a0%u201cThere are statistics that show that the arts in every county in Florida get a financial boost of a 9 to 1 return,%u201d said Dunlap. Using the 9 to 1 ($9 locally for every $1 spent) return on investment equation, that%u2019s a loss of $30 million in Broward alone.%u201cThe amount of arts funding (the governor) vetoed is de minimis to the billions in surplus Florida carries, but the local detriment is extraordinary. These programs are not only vital to fostering culture and creativity, but they%u2019re also sound investment components to all communities,%u201d said Sen. Jason Pizzo, (D-Hollywood). In Pizzo%u2019s district, the Art and Culture Center/Hollywood would have received $61,100, 47 percent of a recommended $130,000.Statistics from the United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economy Analysis (BEA) showed that arts and cultural economic activity accounted for $39 billion of Florida%u2019s economy and 3.1 percent of Florida%u2019s Gross Domestic Product or GDP.Bonnie Clearwater, director and chief curator of NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale, added that the elimination of state funding %u201cwas disappointing especially as our programs and budgets for 2024-25 are already in place.%u201d%u201cAs a leader of arts organizations in Florida since 1985, I have witnessed and was part of the phenomenal growth of art and culture in Florida. Much of this growth was stimulated by grants from local governments and the state.%u201dFor Broward County theater company New City Players, the recommended amount for funding was $22,810. It was the theater%u2019s first year in applying for state funding, according to Tim Davis, the producing artistic director. And while the little more than $10,000 they could have received from the state would have boosted wages, for instance, %u201cit%u2019s not money we%u2019ve had before and were relying on, but yes it will have an effect. Davis said there is a larger issue in the lack of state support than funding and something more far reaching.%u201cWhy are you cutting something that drives the economy and drives the overall, to use a business term, the overall brand of the state? We could be a true artistic mecca based on the Arts & Culture continuedThe arts are %u201csound investment components to all communities,%u201d said Sen. Jason Pizzo, (D-Hollywood). In Pizzo%u2019s district, the Art and Culture Center/Hollywood was earmarked to have received $61,100 from the state in funding. (Photo from Florida Senate Photo Gallery through Wikimedia Commons)Tim Davis, the producing artistic director of Broward County%u2019s New City Players, whose company was likely to have received state funding, said that the optics of non-state support are concerning.