Business Committee for the Arts Survey Reveals
Business Gave $3.16 Billion to the Arts in 2006
November 27, 2007, New York, NY – Business support to the arts totaled $3.16 billion in 2006 according to the triennial national survey released by the Business Committee for the Arts, Inc. (BCA), a national not-for-profit organization established in 1967 to bring business and the arts together. Titled, The BCA Report: National Survey of Business Support to the Arts 2007, this survey revealed a 5% decline in support in comparison to the $3.32 billion business allocated to the arts in 2003.
Conducted by Shugoll Research, Bethesda, MD, (www.shugollresearch.com) and supported by a grant from Principal Financial Group, Des Moines, IA, this survey is the only one in the United States that tracks support from small companies (less than $1 million in annual revenue), midsize companies ($1 million to $49.9 million in annual revenue) and large companies ($50 million and more in annual revenue).
"While the slight decline raises concern," said Judith A. Jedlicka, President, Business Committee for the Arts, "It was not unexpected given the changes that have occurred during the past few years. Philanthropic priorities have changed considerably and competition for business support has increased substantially."
To address some of the changes and to reverse the decline, the Business Committee for the Arts, Americans for the Arts, the Arts and Business Council and the Arts and Business Council/New York have formed a collaboration to develop a national plan for action. Details about this initiative will be released after the first of the year.
Other key survey findings include:
- There was a 6% increase in the number of companies supporting the arts from 2003 to 2006.
- The median contribution per business remains unchanged at $800 from 2003 to 2006.
- The median contribution of small businesses to the arts remained unchanged at $500, but the percentage of small companies contributing to the arts declined from 34% in 2003 to 29% in 2006. Nevertheless, given the tremendous number of small businesses in America, those with revenues of under $1 million are responsible for about half of all arts giving (52%).
- The median contribution of midsize companies to the arts was $2,000 in 2006, a decline from $2,600 in 2003. Similarly the percentage of midsize companies contributing to the arts went from 46% in 2003 to 42% in 2006.
- The percentage of large companies contributing to the arts in 2006 (57%), compared to 2003 (58%) was relatively unchanged, however, the median contribution increased from $15,800 in 2003 to $25,000 in 2006.
- The number of companies making contributions to philanthropic causes declined to 69% in 2006, compared to 74% in 2003.
The survey margin of error is +/- 4%.
To order copies of the survey, visit the BCA Web site www.bcainc.org/research.html.