Entertainment

Film and TV Tax Credit Push Aims for a Lame-Duck Vote

Jonah VillalbaPublished 4m ago3 min readBased on 2 sources
Film and TV Tax Credit Push Aims for a Lame-Duck Vote
Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash

Backers of a federal tax credit for film and TV production want it passed before the year ends. Speaking on a panel at the American Film Market in Los Angeles, they said they will push for a vote in Congress's lame-duck session, the stretch after the November elections when outgoing lawmakers are still in office, according to Deadline.

The panel included Steven Paul, who runs SP Media, and Scott Karol, its chief operating officer. Josh Rogin, senior vice president of federal government affairs at the Motion Picture Association, also spoke. Paul and Karol are special advisers to Jon Voight, whom Donald Trump has called his Hollywood ambassador.

Paul said the credit needs to be settled before December ends so that studios can plan for 2027. Karol called it a jobs bill. Rogin said the bill reportedly has 50 co-sponsors, and that the money it would yield runs out on Dec. 11 if it is not passed. He also said incoming House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer support it.

The bill's wording could still change, Rogin said, and its proponents do not want a cap on the total. If it passes in December, it would take effect on Jan. 1.

So how would it work? The proposal starts at a 20% credit on all labour spent on a film production. Labour here means the wages and crew costs of making the picture. On top of that sit four bonus add-ons of 5% each, but a production can use only two of them:

  • A film made by an independent company, meaning one that is not owned by a publicly traded firm.
  • Shooting 30% of production days in an area the US emergency agency FEMA has declared a disaster zone, or in rural areas.
  • Shooting across more than one jurisdiction.
  • A US company bringing a production home after shooting it abroad.

The credit applies against a production's federal income tax. Karol said it is not a rebate, a cheque paid out by the government. Instead, the producer who incurs the expense takes the deduction. The federal incentive is meant to set a floor, a base level that individual states could then build their own incentives on top of.

Rogin put the scale of the problem in one line. He said 39% of the American film industry shoots in the United States now, down from 60% years ago. Productions have moved work to other countries with their own incentives, which is the gap the bill is designed to narrow.

The American Film Market runs from Nov. 10 to 15 at the Fairmont Century Plaza, according to the market's website. Its AFM Sessions conference programme, with more than 30 talks featuring executives, creators and dealmakers, runs Nov. 12 to 15. The market also hosts LocationEXPO, which brings filmmakers together with film commissions and production service companies, and an Innovation Hub focused on emerging AI and technology firms.

Whether the bill reaches a vote before the Dec. 11 date Rogin named is the open question. The panel's message was clear: the window is short, and the bill's supporters want it closed out this year.

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