Last modified: Friday, October 17, 2008 3:00 AM EDT Arts hit hard by budget slashing BY JIM HAND SUN CHRONICLE STAFF State support for local arts will drop and criminal background checks will be harder to get because of budget cuts announced by Gov. Deval Patrick, local legislators said Thursday. They also warned that reductions in aid to cities and towns are still under consideration, even though the aid has escaped the budget axe thus far. State Sen. James Timilty, D-Walpole, said he was disappointed that money for the Attleboro Arts Museum and the Mansfield Music and Arts Association was cut by Patrick. The state Office of Travel and Tourism had set aside $50,000 to continue renovations to the Attleboro Arts Museum in the city's downtown, but Timilty said Patrick reduced the figure to $12,000. Museum Director Mim Fawcett said she did not want to comment until she receives official notification from the state about the cut. Another $50,000 was earmarked for the Mansfield Music and Arts Association, but the governor eliminated that funding. The association sponsors plays, offers summer arts education classes and organizes arts festivals. Timilty said he supports the programs because they bring visitors to downtown areas and boosts business. State Rep. Steve D'Amico, D-Seekonk, said plans to make Goff Hall in Rehoboth more handicapped accessible took a hit when $25,000 for architectural fees was eliminated. The hall contains the town library. Meanwhile, the state agency that handles criminal records had its personnel account cut by 50 percent, Timilty said. He said this will make it difficult for organizations like summer camps and nursing homes to have criminal background checks conducted on potential employees. On the education front, state Rep. John Lepper, R-Attleboro, said Bristol Community College had its $16 million salary and administration account reduced by $808,000. He said it is too soon to determine what impact the move could have on the college's new branch facility in Attleboro. Local legislators also said they were concerned about cuts to health care and police training programs. Patrick does not have the authority to cut aid to cities and towns, but legislators said it might be considered in the future. Lepper said it has been his experience that the initial wave of budget cuts in response to an economic downtown is never enough and local aid reductions follow. The Legislature, however, would have to first give Patrick the authority to make the cuts, something it will be reluctant to do unless there is no other choice, he said. State Rep. Jay Barrows, R-Mansfield, said previous governors had to cut local aid during tough times and it could happen again. "It's impossible to predict what we might be forced to do," D'Amico said, noting that local aid makes up 40 percent of the state budget. The problem, the lawmakers said, is no one knows how low the economy will sink, taking state revenue with it. "The economy is bad and getting worse," D'Amico said. Barrows and Lepper said Democrats made the situation worse by passing a bloated budget last June. Lepper said the $700 million in cuts Patrick made earlier this week does not even cover the additional spending the Legislature approved when it passed the budget.