A group of Republican and Democratic lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday that would create a federal tax break to keep movie and television production in the United States.
Sens. Tim Scott, a Republican, and Adam Schiff, a Democrat, were joined by other senators and House members of both parties in introducing the “Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act,” meant to help American cities and states compete with foreign filming locations that have grown more popular in large part because of the lucrative tax incentives they offer.
“We cannot stand by as more and more American film production moves overseas, taking jobs, investment, and an important source of American cultural influence with it,” Scott said in a statement. “This legislation will create jobs in communities across America, support local economies, and help ensure that the next generation of iconic American films is made right here in America.”
The new plan would provide a 20% federal tax credit based on labor costs to U.S. film and television productions that spend at least $1 million and have at least 75% of their principal photography days occur in the United States. The base credit can rise to a maximum of 30% under certain circumstances and would be available for post-production and visual effects if at least 75% of those activities take place domestically.
President Trump recently called for lawmakers to pass such a bill and do it right away. “Hollywood is a Complete and Total Disaster!” Trump wrote on his social media site late last month. “Despite the name, it is getting very little work. There is no incentive to be there, and it is hurting California very badly.”
Trump credited the actor Jon Voight, one of his Hollywood ambassadors, for working with other entertainment industry figures to encourage new federal tax incentives for film and TV production.
“The amount of money spent on Tax Incentives will be made up tenfold by the money pouring into the Treasury’s coffers,” Trump wrote. “Meetings are being set up with the Leaders of both Parties in order to get this done. It should be Bipartisan, especially since so much money is being lost in California, and other largely Blue States.”
Politico’s Daniel Miller notes that the proposal “could face resistance from conservatives wary of a new tax break — particularly one benefitting an industry centered in heavily Democratic California.” Still, as Miller writes, some Republican-run states have film and TV production hubs that stand to benefit.
Most states reportedly already offer their own production incentives, and California last year boosted its yearly tax credit from $330 million to as much as $750 million until 2030. But Hollywood studios say that a federal tax incentive could make a big difference.
“Earlier this month,” Miller reports, “a report commissioned by the Motion Picture Association, which represents and lobbies on behalf of major Hollywood studios, projected a federal incentive would lead to $125.3 billion in additional U.S. production spending from 2027 to 2035. It also forecasted that the measure would support 143,500 additional full-time-equivalent jobs in an average year and generate $133.1 billion in additional labor income during the credit’s first nine years.”
Rep. Laura Friedman, a California Democrat, told reporters that federal action has been the missing piece in restoring U.S. competitiveness. “For over a year, I’ve worked to build a coalition of unions, studios, Republicans and Democrats, and the White House, because we knew that a national film tax credit would bring hundreds of thousands of jobs back to our country,” Friedman said in a statement. “This bill is a result of that coalition. It tells every country that has been outbidding us for American work that we are done losing.”
Lawmakers reportedly hope to pass the legislation during the lame-duck session after the midterm elections.