California Gov. Newsom Signs Bill Extending Film & TV Tax Incentives – Updated
UPDATED, 4:25 PM: California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill today that extends the state’s $330 million-a-year Film and TV Tax Credit Program for an additional five years. The California Film Commission, which administers the program, says that it will create an estimated 60,000 jobs and $10 billion of investment over that time.
“California’s iconic entertainment industry drives economic growth in communities all across our state,” the governor said. “Over the past years, our Film and Television Tax Credit Program has helped create thousands of good paying jobs, relocated productions to California, and brought billions in new investment to our state. Through the extension of the program, we’ll continue this growth, protect jobs, and push for progress on diversity so workers better represent communities throughout our state.”
Said Colleen Bell, the film commission’s executive director: “Today’s fantastic news regarding California’s Film and TV Tax Credit Program is a testament to Governor Newsom’s leadership and the Legislature’s commitment to the industry. For more than a century, our unmatched crews, talent, infrastructure and locations have made California the world’s entertainment capital. The extension of our tax credit program will strengthen our global competitiveness and deliver significant, long-term value to California’s economic future.”
Productions involved in previous versions of the program “generated more than $23 billion in economic output and supported the employment of more than 178,000 cast and crew,” the Commission said. This new budget will create the state’s fourth-generation film/TV tax credit program – known as Program 4.0.
Here are other statements on today’s bill signing.
From the Entertainment Union Coalition:
Today with the signing of SB 132, Governor Gavin Newsom kept his promise to the people working in California’s motion picture industry. By extending the California Film and Television Tax Credit Program through 2030, Californians can work where they live, close to their families and communities.
Additionally, SB 132 includes new diversity provisions which reflect the values of California, as well as a groundbreaking first-in-the-nation Production Safety Pilot Program, authored by Senator Dave Cortese, establishing clear and enforceable safety standards for those working on a production, and a dedicated safety advisor to implement them on the ground.
SB 132 is critically important to the future of motion picture, television, and streaming production in the state of California by keeping us competitive with other states offering incentives. This bill preserves good middle-class jobs that are safe and accessible to all working families in California.
From Motion Picture Association Chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin:
“The California Film and Television Tax Credit program has led to the creation of hundreds of thousands of high paying union jobs, it’s supported countless local businesses, and pumped billions of dollars into the state’s economy. The 4.0 version of the program, signed into law today by Governor Newsom, will build on that success by creating new commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion and establishing a pilot program on production safety, among other provisions. I want to thank Governor Newsom for his unwavering leadership on behalf of California’s creative community, as well as the many champions in the legislature for passing this important extension and enhancement to the production incentive program.”
PREVIOUSLY, June 27: California’s Legislature passed a bill today that extends the state’s film incentives program through 2030 and establishes the nation’s first safety protocols in law for television and film workers. The bill, AB/SB 132, now is headed to the desk of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is expected to sign it.
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Since its inception, the program has generated $8.4 billion in qualified wages paid to 1.85 million California workers. The 656 film, television and streaming productions receiving the tax credit since 2009 spent $23.2 billion in California, according to the Entertainment Union Coalition, which is made up of SAG-AFTRA, the Directors Guild, the California IATSE Council, Teamsters Local 399 and Laborers Union Local 724.
“Along with the extension of the California Film and TV Tax Incentive program, significant new diversity provisions and a landmark Safety on Production Pilot Program were included in AB/SB 132,” the coalition said in a statement. “We thank Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins and Speaker Anthony Rendon for their longstanding support; Senator Steve Padilla and Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo for their months of Subcommittee work on this legislation; Assemblymember Luz Rivas and Senator Maria Elena Durazo and the members of the Los Angeles County Delegation for their timely action to keep this highly successful tax incentive program working for our members and our state.
“Finally, we thank Senator Dave Cortese for his unwavering support over the past two years in helping to draft and secure the passage of this unprecedented production safety legislation, which once again puts California in the forefront of workplace safety. Preserving good middle-class jobs that are safe and available to all Californians is something we can all be proud of.”
The state budget agreement, which incorporates Cortese’s SB 735, also establishes the nation’s first safety protocols in law for television and film workers. The bipartisan legislation reflects two years of negotiations between studios and labor representatives following the 2021 death of a cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the Rust film set in New Mexico.
“Conversations about this legislation started the week after the tragic loss of a cinematographer,” said Cortese, who chairs the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment, and Retirement. “Those negotiations have produced the nation’s first and best safety practices for California workers in the state’s vital motion picture industry. The agreement will also boost diversity on film productions and create an industry pipeline for students of color, and it will uplift local economies by helping to keep motion picture productions in California. This agreement establishes best practices statewide that were already in use among Hollywood’s top studios. I commend Governor Newsom, the film studios and unions for their commitment to film safety.”
The bill protects film and TV workers by establishing mandatory guidelines around the use of firearms and ammunition on productions, establishes training requirements and safety standards for prop masters and armorers. It also prohibits the use of live ammunition except in limited circumstances following safety rules and laws.
The bill also creates a five-year safety pilot program requiring any employer who receives a motion picture tax credit to hire an independent safety adviser to conduct preproduction risk assessments and oversee safety practices and procedures in motion picture, TV and streaming productions.
Mike Miller, head of IATSE’s West Coast office, said: “IATSE and its 54,000 members working in California owe the landmark Safety on Productions Pilot Program legislation in AB/SB 132 to Senator Dave Cortese, who for the past two years, has stood by his commitment to work with us to move industry safety protocols from rules on paper to actual enforcement on the ground. Our unique industry faces a myriad of hazardous and potentially hazardous activities that take place daily. Now, starting here in California, with productions that receive the California Film and Television Tax Credit 4.0, IATSE members, and everyone who works on these productions, will know that safety is important, not only to them but to the Governor and legislature as well.”
Said Rebecca Rhine, Western Executive Director of the Directors Guild: “We thank Senator Cortese for his leadership on this transformational legislation that will prioritize safety in our industry and save lives. Now DGA directors and their teams, along with all other cast and crew members, have a skilled and experienced ally and collaborator on production whose sole focus is keeping everyone safe. While this model starts with the film tax incentive in California, we look forward to the day it becomes the standard across the country.”
Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.
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