Louisiana lawmakers saved the state’s tax credit as part of a sweeping set of fiscal reform bills that are headed the governor’s desk coming out of a special legislative session.
The increasingly popular credit had been abolished by the House along with a wide range of other incentives to make up lost revenue from Gov. Jeff Landry’s push to slash corporate tax and personal income tax in the state. But the film and television incentive was reinstated by a Senate committee earlier this week. The annual cap was lowered to $125 million from $150 million but local film industry players were still pretty thrilled that it emerged relatively intact.
The amount set aside for residual claims lowered to $125 million, down from $180 million. The bills passed the full Senate and worked through the House today without further cuts.
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The program, which starts at 25% but can rise as high as 40% in certain situations, has become increasingly popular with producers. It would sunset in 2031.
Production along with all tax incentives in the state are on the chopping block as Landry seeks to change Louisiana’s tax laws, slashing the corporate tax rate, currently the highest in the South, to make the state more competitive for business, and moving to a flat 3% personal income tax rate. The idea is to plug the ensuing tax revenue shortfall by eliminating tax incentives, including, among others, credits for the restoration of historic structures. The Senate committee also left that with cuts but intact.
Landry, who is expected to sight the package of bills, had a called state legislators to a special session early this month to vote on the measures.
Louisiana has begun to attract a steady stream of productions and pop up regularly among the list of states filmmakers look at. Over the past decade, it has hosted over 700 motion pictures, TV series and documentaries from Interview with the Vampire and National Treasure to Nickel Boys, Leverage: Redemption, The Iron Claw and Where the Crawdads Sing. As that happens and local crews take root and local businesses benefit it gets harder to eliminate state tax credits. A push earlier this year to cap Georgia’s much more generous incentive was also foiled.
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