Arts sector adds billions to South Carolina economy, report says

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Art in South Carolina is adding billions of dollars to the local economy.

A new report from the South Carolina Arts Commission shows the economic impact of art in the Palmetto State. The data from 2021 estimates an annual impact of $14.1 billion, a 45% growth over five years.

The commission said they worked with Dr. Joseph C. Von Nessen. Von Nessen is a research economist at the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina. For the report, he researched data from the U.S. census and economic analysis bureaus and commerce department.

Highlights of the data include:

• There are 123,550 jobs paying $5.7 billion in South Carolina from the arts. The data says this is roughly 5.5% of the total employment base in the state. This is a 7.5% increase compared to 2018.
• The state collects an estimated $360.2 million in tax revenue from arts-related jobs. This is a 33% increase from 2018.

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