A new study notes cuts in funding for US state arts agencies in 2003 and suggests that the cuts are not an aberration. “The reason for these cuts is not just a one-time fiscal crisis, but the political weakness of state arts agencies that has arisen because of a growing mismatch between their roles and structures and the cultural and political realities they face. A shift in the arts agencies’ focus and funding may be a solution, but it cannot take place until important conceptual and practical issues are resolved.”