H 2088 was introduced in the House on January 25, 2016. The bill would extend the sunset date of the Motion Picture, Digital Media and Film Production Income Tax Credit to January 1, 2024.
The Garden State Film and Digital Media Jobs Act was vetoed on January 11. The bill proposed to reestablish the film and media tax credit in New Jersey.
Legislation introduced in the Senate on January 26 would amend the production incentives program by:
Including writers' salaries and fees within production costs eligible for the Empire State Film Production Credit (excludes fees based on deferred, leveraged, profit participation costs, or fees exceeding those otherwise permitted).
Defining "writer" as one employed or retained to write or revise scripts, screenplays, teleplays, dialogue, sketches, routines or narrations.
Setting a $50,000 maximum per writer, per qualified film, provided the writer is subject to taxation by New York State.
Limiting tax credits for production costs for writers' fees and salaries to $5 million annually.
Including a new section regarding diversity in hiring for writers. Where more than three writers are hired or retained for services on an eligible production, credits for writer costs will only be granted if at least one writer is from a minority group member or is a woman.
SB 1297, introduced in the Senate on January 9, proposes to amend the annual cap to provide for an annual increase of the aggregate annual amount of the Empire State Film Production Credits taken based upon inflation, beginning in tax year 2017. The adjustment would be done annually on January 1. The amount of the production credits will not be less than $420 million annually.
Legislation was introduced in the House on January 14, proposing to increase the size of the Motion Picture Competitiveness Program (MPCP) fund incrementally in the following amounts:
For calendar year 2017, increase to $5.25 million.
For calendar year 2018, increase to $7 million.
For calendar year 2019, increase to $8.5 million.
For calendar year 2020 and subsequent years, increase to $10 million.
Additionally, the bill proposes to extend the sunset date to December 31, 2023.
