Part I. This part shows a picture of the state of the art economics. First, the situation in the Netherlands is described thematically. The most important issue in the seventies and eighties was trying to find an economic rationale for the government support of the arts. . Part II. This new theoretical concept is tested on the cultural policy of the central government in the Netherlands. Since World War II the Dutch government is structurally concerned with the arts and the first twenty years can be considered as ‘the building-up period’. Government expenditures for the arts rose from 0,05 percent of total government expenditures in 1946 to 0,19 percent in 1965. . Part III. It would appear that each amount the government spends on the arts, is legitimate from the point of view that it will finance arts production facilities. The following condition must be stipulated: government money for the arts should not slip away into bureaucratic waste. . Zie: Summary