The new Kentucky Creative Industry Report is being hailed as a barometer of the economic impact of the arts industry.
The study defines creative employment as positions in visual arts, crafts, music, dance, theater, and literature. Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet Secretary Bob Stewart said the report is a critical analysis of the arts and various sectors of the economy.
"It also shows what the average salary is for those involved in the creative industry, how many of those jobs are there, how does the creative industry impact other industries in Kentucky," Stewart said.
Stewart says a changing Kentucky economy, including a decline in coal jobs, needs to realize the benefits of arts –related businesses.
"So, there's a lot of strategic thinking going on about what's Kentucky's economy gonna look like in the future,” Stewart said. “So the timing could not be better to come out with this report about the arts, to say the arts need to be at the table when we construct a new strategy for moving forward economically in this state."
Stewart would like to see more tax incentives to help arts-related businesses flourish. He says a strong case can be made for tax breaks for the creative industry.
"Let's also not forget the creative industry jobs,” Stewart said. “So, what kind of economic strategies, what sort of incentives, what sort of tax breaks might we need that would allow the arts to flourish even more in terms of businesses associated with the arts."
?The report shows the creative industry accounts for two and a half percent of overall Kentucky employment or 108 thousand 498 jobs. The industry, as a whole, generates almost two billion dollars in earnings.
