Newsom Proposes Raising California's Film Credit to $1 Billion a Year
Summary
The plan would extend the program through 2040, set aside $100 million a year for independent films and, for the first time, let above-the-line pay qualify.
"California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday proposed expanding the state's film and television tax credit from $750 million to at least $1 billion a year and extending it through 2040, Deadline and TheWrap reported. The plan would open the credit to above-the-line costs such as actors, directors and producers, reserve $100 million a year for independent productions (a $26 million increase, according to LA Magazine) and add a 5% bump for companies that commit to more than one California production. If passed, it would be the largest capped film and TV credit in the country.
The governor's office credited last year's expansion, from $330 million to $750 million, with $8.25 billion in direct production spending, more than 43,000 cast and crew jobs and a 52% rise in film shoot days. Newsom also urged Congress to pass the Motion Picture, Television and Entertainment Revitalization Act, a proposed federal production incentive, before the end of the year. ""California created the modern entertainment industry; we're the capital of entertainment and we're going to keep it here,"" he said.
The proposal still needs the Legislature, and none of the reports explain how it would be paid for or when it would take effect. Deadline described it as a ""November surprise"" from an exiting governor; Newsom's second term ends in January, and a separate Deadline report said film unions are now asking whether his successor will carry the plan forward."
