The Motion Picture Association has released a new commissioned study by Olsberg•SPI that argues that production spending in the United States could double by 2035 and add 143,500 jobs annually nationwide if Congress and President Donald Trump sign a federal film tax incentive into law.
The report, unveiled on Tuesday morning, marks the start of an all-in lobbying push by the newly formed U.S. Film and Television Production Coalition, a group whose members include the MPA; Hollywood unions like the Writers Guild, DGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE and Teamsters; and Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight, who is credited with building the needed momentum for the tax incentive by convincing President Trump to give his public support.
“A federal incentive would be a gamechanger for our industry,” said Charles Rivkin, chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association. “This study tells us that we can bring more opportunities to life for people in all 50 states who bring great stories to life — the casts and crews, the set builders, construction workers, truck drivers, caterers and more. That’s precisely what’s bringing President Trump, Republicans and Democrats in Congress, studios and unions and all of us together: the need to leave a positive and enduring imprint on American creativity and America’s economy.”
“America should be producing American movies. And American workers should be doing the work. President Trump has called on Republicans and Democrats to come together on a new federal film and television incentive,” added Teamsters President Sean O’Brien. “It will require bipartisan support, which is a good thing, because this should not be about party politics. The Teamsters will aggressively support legislation that works for American workers and helps bring productions back home.”
The study is based off of an assumed federal incentive consisting of transferable tax credits with a rate of 20% on qualified labor expenditures, which would include salaries of above-the-line talent such as actors and directors as is the case for incentives in other major production hubs like the United Kingdom. The study also assumes 5% uplifts for independent productions and those in a FEMA-declared disaster area.
Olsberg•SPI estimates that such an incentive would add approximately $125 billion in U.S. production spending between 2027 and 2035, with annual spending reaching $38.7 billion in 2035 compared to $16.7 billion without that incentive.
This study is one that has been months in the making as members of this new coalition have spent more than a year lobbying lawmakers on Capitol Hill on the importance of a federal incentive not just to Democrat-controlled production hubs like California and New York but also to Republican ones like Texas, Louisiana and Georgia.
As TheWrap first reported, the freshman bipartisan duo of Atlanta Republican Rep. Brian Jack and Burbank Democrat Rep. Laura Friedman have led the charge on the federal incentive, with House Ways & Means Committee members Nathaniel Moran (R-TX), Mike Carey (R-OH) and Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) expected to be among the key Republicans when the incentive is introduced as a bill in that committee. California Dems Judy Chu and Linda Sanchez are also expected to be key Ways & Means members gathering support.
“Sixty-five countries have decided it’s worth competing for film and television production. The United States hasn’t, and too many Americans have lost their jobs because of it,” said Rep. Friedman. “Every production that goes overseas takes electricians, carpenters, drivers and small business revenue with it. A national film tax credit will create more than 140,000 American jobs in all fifty states and nearly $250 billion in economic activity. That’s a commonsense, bipartisan fix, and I’ll keep working to get it done.”
Congressional insiders tell TheWrap that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are still working out the details of the incentive, including which uplifts to include such as relocation bonuses for TV shows that move production to the U.S. from other countries and bonuses for productions in rural areas. Proponents of the bill are hoping to get the bill passed through Congress and to President Trump to be signed before the end of the year, with potential passage likely coming in the lame duck period following the November midterm elections.
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