Data Collection for Most Comprehensive Study of Economic Impact of Nonprofit Arts and Culture Industry Set to Begin May 1. Tuesday, April 26, 2022 – The Coos Bay-North Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau is pleased to announce its participation in the Americans for the Arts Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6) study. This is the sixth national study of the economic impact of the nonprofit arts and culture industry. Building on its 25-year legacy, AEP6 will examine the economic power that the arts and culture wield in the Coos Bay area and 386 other participating communities, representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Each community will receive a customized economic impact report about the number of jobs supported, government revenue generated, and economic activity of its nonprofit arts and culture sector. The Arts & Economic Prosperity® series demonstrates that an investment in the arts provides both cultural and economic benefits. Previous studies were published in 1994, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017. In 2017, AEP5 documented that the nonprofit arts industry generated $166.3 billion in economic activity (spending by organizations plus the event-related spending by their audiences), which supported 4.6 million jobs and generated $27.5 billion in government revenue. Suzan Jenkins, executive director of the Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County and member of the AEP6 Equity Task Force, said, “As a long-time participant in the Arts and Economic Prosperity studies, our agency has utilized the AEP survey results and achieved dynamic and sustained fiscal and philosophical legislative support for our advocacy efforts for more than a decade. The new AEP6 study promises to produce even more valuable results for participants nationwide.” Audience-intercept surveys will be collected from attendees to arts and cultural events in happening in our communities from May 2022 through April 2023. “We hope to generate 800 completed surveys,” added Langlinais. These will be added to the national sample, which is anticipated to surpass 250,000 surveys. The national findings, as well as the results for each of the 387 participating communities, will be made public in September 2023.