Industries are usually complimentary. Supporting the movie/tv industry helps the retail, hotel, tourism, housing and restaurant industry in a state. State tax credits to one industry are not undermining another industry but usually supporting its expansion.
Oh, come on, man. Who do you think pays the taxes that the favored industry doesn't pay? Oh wait. I get it. The credit creates more revenue, right? Well, then why not give every industry a "credit"?
Good question. I suppose one answer is that some don't have as much freedom to set up shop anywhere as the film industry, but it is still a good point. Another factor is that economic efficiency or tax revenue is not the only value that should be considered in passing laws. It is important, but there are other considerations. Fairness is one. Should out of state industries be favored over existing home grown ones? Politics plays a role too. Should a conservative state be lavishing subsidies on a film industry that basically opposes every value the state's governing majority stands for?
As far as I know, most if not all US states went through the same Recession. Yet, MN has pulled ahead. Lots of people are "fleeing" the north for FL. It's the weather, stupid.
It comes back to economic policy to drive growth. Successful state tax credits are those for an industry which attracts out-of-state revenue & growth. Examples of these are tax credits for tourism, sports, and movies/tv production. Providing a state tax credit to optometrists does not drive industry growth, the optometrists are licensed only to operate in the state and would have the same amount of business with or without a tax credit. Why does North Carolina provide a tax credit to Optometrists and not other doctors? (Answer: the former corrupt legislative speaker Jim Black was an optometrist.) Providing tax credits to industries that provide no payback and do not drive growth is absurd. North Carolina just eliminated the two top tax credits which drove the most tax revenue growth in our state; now the Republican legislators (who got rid of the movie & preservation tax credits for religious reasons) have discovered that it is going to add an additional $200M to the budget gap for 2015 due to lost revenue.
You're supporting my argument. These "credits" are open to abuse. Everyone should be playing on a level field....no industry favored over another. They need to untie taxes from policy decisions.
States should be focused on enhancing their own economic development and increasing overall tax revenue receipts. Each tax credit should have an associated business case which provides the return on investment in terms of increases in overall state tax revenue and economic development if the tax credit is provided. This should be expressed as ROI (tax revenue increase for each dollar spent on the tax credit) and monitored each year. There should be some minimum cut-off for payback that will cause the credit to be discontinued (for example $6 in tax revenue for each $1 in credit). Tax Credit decisions should not be made to support friends of politicians, nor should they be discontinued because some religious extremists raise a fuss. Tax credits should be applied based on sound economic decisions. Tax credits which attract new industries or external revenue to the state should be supported. Typically movie/tv, tourism, and sports tax credits meeting this criteria. Tax credits which do not attract new industry or revenue to the state should not be put into place. In the case of North Carolina, discontinuing the Film and Preservation tax credits is immediately causing over $100M drop in state tax revenues (above and beyond the credit amount). The decision to discontinue these tax credits were made due to the demands of religious extremists, not based on sound economic policy. Now North Carolina is suffering the after-effects and the governor is desperately trying to undo the policy. The problem with the film tax credit is that all the productions have now moved to other states and it will take some time to attract them back to North Carolina.
Dreams of working in movies in NC beginning to fade http://www.wral.com/dreams-of-working-in-movies-in-nc-beginning-to-fade/14584281/ WILMINGTON, N.C. — When Leigh Wiley was a film student at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, she dreamt of the day when she could pack up her degree and see the world one production at a time. But Wiley, a North Carolina native, found the opportunity and community of the local film industry right outside her door too comfortable to leave behind. After graduation, she scored a job with EUE/Screen Gems Studios before landing a six-year stint on Wilmington's crown-jewel production, "One Tree Hill." At times, her jobs have been a mixed bag of opportunities - including various work with locations, wardrobe, art and transportation departments. And a move to Charlotte in 2012, where she worked on two seasons of Cinemax's "Banshee," only further diversified her resume. But for Wiley, 31, remaining within the state lines never felt like missing out on her dream. In fact, she said her life was a "wild adventure" right here. Less than a month ago, however, Wiley joined the growing exodus of crew members who have sought refuge in other states as film jobs in North Carolina become scarce and prospects for future work dim as the state's new grant fund quickly runs dry. According to Jason Rosin, business manager for the local film crew union IATSE 491, an estimated 20 percent of the state's 4,000-member crew base has vacated - and more are expected to follow. "I never thought the film incentive would change so much that I would have to leave the state to find work," Wiley said from her new home in Atlanta. That change was the N.C. General Assembly's decision to abolish the state's film incentive Jan. 1 in favor of a $10 million grant program, leaving many of North Carolina's productions to seek out more financially attractive states. Now, as the already-limited funds rapidly dwindle and the state scrounges for work, potential clients nationwide could find their patience with the state tested if the current legislative session doesn't show some support for the industry, according to Joe Chianese, executive vice president of Entertainment Partners, which monitors incentive programs worldwide. In the first quarter of the year, Wilmington has seen only three productions: the tail end of season two for Fox's "Sleepy Hollow," which will relocate to Atlanta for season three; the long-in-production feature film "Bolden!," scheduled to run through early summer; and CBS' "Under the Dome," currently filming through late summer. (More at above url)
Kansas high school student ends up on the Brownbackistan watch list after creating 51 minute documentary exposing the stupidity of education funding in Kansas... Louisburg High School student's budget documentary stirs controversy http://www.kshb.com/news/state/kans...students-budget-documentary-stirs-controversy TOPEKA, Kan. - A high-school student's documentary, "Where the Buffaloed Roam: An Ode to the Kansas Budget," is raising a stir. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the 51-minute movie was featured this month at the Kansas City FilmFest in Missouri. Released in February by Louisburg High School student Carson Tappan, the film was just posted Sunday on YouTube. You can watch the complete documentary below. The film highlights major income tax cuts that Republican Gov. Sam Brownback championed in 2012 and 2013 to help stimulate the economy. The cuts have contributed to massive revenue shortfalls.