After failing to safe an exemption for the leisure trade, stakeholders have made a last-minute proposal to mitigate the influence of California‘s new enterprise tax credit score laws on Hollywood.
State Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur and Senator Ben Allen on Friday launched AB/SB 186, which if handed would exempt indie initiatives from the state‘s new enterprise tax credit score caps and permit all productions with state tax credit to monetize extra of their refunds, quicker.
“Final yr, we took motion to get households again to work and jumpstart the State’s movie and tv trade,” Senator Allen mentioned in an announcement. “Nonetheless, we’re prone to dropping this momentum, and all the roles we’ve created during the last yr, if we don’t act by the tip of the month. I’m grateful for the help from Governor Newsom, Assemblymember Zbur and the legislative management to assist us discover a path ahead that may retain California’s standing as the worldwide hub of leisure.”
Stakeholders say a state funds invoice that was signed into regulation on June 29 has jeopardized the celebrated improve to California‘s movie and tv tax credit score improve to $750 million in 2025. That 2025 increase to this system, the results of some critical lobbying from Hollywood, greater than doubled the quantity of funding that may very well be allotted to giving productions tax reduction.
However funds invoice SB 122 threatened its viability by extending beforehand momentary caps on the usage of enterprise tax credit over $5 million a yr. The funds invoice additionally made the ceiling on utilizing credit over $5 million a yr, or 70 % of a taxpayer’s legal responsibility, whichever is bigger, everlasting beginning in 2030.
The brand new trailer invoice wouldn‘t give main productions a go from these caps, however it could improve the perks for productions that select to monetize a portion of their tax credit slightly than put them in direction of their tax legal responsibility. (The flexibility to monetize a portion of the tax credit is comparatively new, having been signed into regulation in 2025). The invoice permits manufacturing to monetize 95 % of their refund, versus the earlier 90 %, and hurries up the gathering interval from 5 to 2 years.
The invoice moreover would push again the expiration date for credit earned earlier than 2025‘s modifications to this system for productions actively taking pictures in California. Productions lately awarded California tax credit would have 15 years to make use of them, slightly than the earlier 9.
The commerce group for main studios and streamers, the Movement Image Affiliation, helps the invoice alongside the Leisure Union Coalition and the Producers Guild of America.
The introduction of AB/SB 186 follows a significant lobbying marketing campaign from unions and the MPA, in addition to a letter-writing marketing campaign from union members, to oppose the inclusion of the leisure trade within the enterprise tax credit score caps. As of August 14, some 350,000 letters had been despatched to legislators airing trade members‘ considerations about what the state funds invoice may imply for manufacturing within the state.
Whereas Zbur and Allen‘s invoice addresses considerations over productions realizing the complete worth of their credit, it might not do a lot to revive belief in policymakers‘ strategy to the state‘s movie incentives program. Stakeholders have expressed concern that the sudden change to this system carried out this yr may scare firms in search of stability and certainty as they make long-term manufacturing plans.
Now, legislators must scramble to go the invoice earlier than the legislative session adjourns on August 31.
“I’m happy that we’ve recognized a path ahead that may assist defend the progress we’ve made to strengthen California’s movie and tv trade,” Assemblymember Zbur mentioned in an announcement. He added of the invoice, “It doesn’t deal with each problem dealing with this extremely aggressive and cell trade, and there’s extra work to do within the coming months, however this is a crucial step towards making certain movie and tv stay a cornerstone of California’s financial system.”
