The Relationship Among Funding Sources for Art and History Museums

Abstract The decline and possible elimination of federal support of the arts in the United States is likely to have a major impact on museum finances. Using data from the 1989 Survey of Museums, we analyze the interactions among major categories of museum funding. The results indicate a strong, positive stimulus of federal funding on private contributions, with some possible displacement of state and local government contributions. The opportunity to generate funds from private sources shows some promise to offset the loss of funds from government sources.