Fixing California’s outdated film and television tax credit program will not be a panacea for film work for Local 80’s members, but it is an essential step in any improvements.
To this end, I have prepared a snapshot report on the California tax credit program and compared it with the nation’s most robust and generous version – the Georgia tax credit program.
This document coordinates data from multiple consultant reports, assessments from educational institutions, and government studies. It is intended to paint an honest, if bleak, portrait of the state of the incentive programs and their impact on the local film economy.
Relevant candidates for the California legislature were sent a copy of this report and a document containing a pledge we asked them to sign. The pledge is simple: “If elected, will you pledge to support making California’s Film and Television Tax Credit program the most competitive in the nation?”
Having commitments in writing from these legislators will allow us to hold them accountable when a bill comes to vote in Sacramento next year.
Local 80 Members Demand Film Incentive Fairness
The California Legislature has failed the members of IATSE Local 80 by not keeping California’s Film Tax Incentive programs competitive with other states.
Georgia, in particular, has declared war on California’s film industry by offering over $1 Billion a year to productions that choose to film in Georgia. This contrasts with California’s paltry $350m cap on funds available to productions filmed in California.
We believe that the only way to protect Los Angeles’ legacy as the hub of American culture is to allow California to compete on an even playing field with other states to secure film and television productions. We believe that producers should choose where to shoot based on where the best crews, facilities, infrastructure, weather and locations are. Not on where they can get the biggest kickbacks. While in a perfect world, no state or foreign country would be offering cash prizes for productions willing to flee from Hollywood, we don’t have control over what other states and countries choose to do. We can only choose how we respond.
We are responding by demanding our representatives defend the history, culture and economic prosperity of California by matching Georgia’s film tax incentive program. California’s GDP is just a hair under $4 trillion vs Georgia’s $600b. There is no question that California can afford to level the playing field for film workers in the state.
Thank you for taking the time to take action! Our union is strong because of our members.
Please keep checking back for updates, endorsements and calls to action. Attend Local 80 General Membership Meetings. Stay involved!
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