NY State Senate Bill 2017-S430

Senate Bill S430

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Provides for an annual increase in the aggregate annual amount of empire state film production credits taken, based upon inflation

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Investigations And Government Operations Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2018	referred to investigations and government operations
Jan 04, 2017	referred to investigations and government operations

2017-S430 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Investigations And Government Operations
Law Section:: Tax Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §24, Tax L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S7023
2013-2014: S115
2015-2016: S1297

2017-S430 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides for an annual increase in the aggregate annual amount of empire state film production credits taken, based upon inflation.

2017-S430 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S430

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the tax law, in relation to the aggregate annual
amount of the empire state film production credit against state taxes

 PURPOSE :

Provides for an annual increase in the aggregate annual amount of
empire state film production credits taken, based upon inflation

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 of the bill amends paragraph 4 of subdivision e of section
24 of the tax law relating to the empire state film production credit,
as added by chapter 268 of the laws of 2012, to provide for an annual
aggregate amount of the Empire State Film Credits that may be taken
against state taxes in 2015 and beyond, based on an inflation adjusted
calculation of the amount provided in the final funded year of 2014.

Section 2 establishes the effective date.

 JUSTIFICATION :

The Empire State Film Production Tax Credit has been an unqualified

success for the State of New York, both culturally and financially.
Despite the fact that New York's tax credit is significantly less
generous than the credits offered by competing states (including
Connecticut and Massachusetts), it continues to be a premier
destination for films and television shows, shining light on the
State's rightful status as a world capital for the arts. The tax
credit program has also proven to have a consistently beneficial
impact on the State's bottom line. In 2009, an Ernst & Young study
estimated that the program had cost the state $690 million while
generating $2.6 billion in tax revenue. Even more importantly, the
program has helped create tens of thousands of new jobs in this state.

While the 2010-2011 state budget extended the program by five years in
2010, it failed to address a major institutional problem which
dissuades television shows from setting up roots in the state. Unlike
movie productions, television productions are "quasi-permanent"
institutions that ordinarily must run for at least four years to reach
syndication length and become truly profitable. This means that as
soon as the second year of a five-year tax credit extension,
television production companies considering putting down roots in the
state can no longer be assured that the credit will still be in place
when their shows reach sufficient length. Consequently, in order to
consistently attract the most promising television series, it is
critical that production companies be given the peace of mind that, if
their shows are successful, they will not be forced to uproot
production and move elsewhere in a few short years.

This bill gives television producers that peace of mind by providing
inflation adjusted annual funding for the Empire State Film Tax Credit
program. A simple funding extension would only delay the problem
instead of providing the genuine solution that is called for.  This
bill does not increase the percentage of production costs eligible for
a tax credit, and it only increases the aggregate total insofar as is
necessary to keep pace with inflation. Consequently, the State would
remain largely insulated from risk while seeing increased benefits.

Between 2002 and 2009 the number of states offering film-production
tax credits rose from 5 to 44. The vast majority of those states offer
more substantial credits to individual productions than New York, and
many are considering increasing the percentage of costs that can be
credited still further. Fortunately, New York does not need to take
part in this film tax credit arms race. Television production
companies want to come here, even if it costs more. They simply want
to be assured that funding for the program will still be in place when
their shows become profitable. If we are to continue to attract
top-shelf television productions we must make certain that our own
program follows the basic dictates of common sense. This bill provides
that common sense solution.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2015-2016 - S1297
2013-2014 - S.115
2011-12: S.7023

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

To be determined.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.

2017-S430 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    430
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 4, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. PERALTA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
   ment Operations
 
 AN ACT to amend the tax law, in relation to the aggregate annual  amount
   of the empire state film production credit against state taxes
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Paragraph 4 of subdivision (e) of section 24  of  the  tax
 law,  as  amended  by section 1-a of part P of chapter 60 of the laws of
 2016, is amended to read as follows:
   (4) Additional pool 2 - The aggregate amount of tax credits allowed in
 subdivision (a) of this section shall be increased by an additional four
 hundred twenty million dollars in each year starting in two thousand ten
 through two thousand [nineteen] SEVENTEEN,  EXCEPT  THAT  IN  TAX  YEARS
 AFTER  TWO THOUSAND SEVENTEEN, SUCH AMOUNT SHALL BE ADJUSTED ANNUALLY ON
 THE FIRST OF JANUARY FOR INFLATION ACCORDING TO THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX
 FOR ALL CONSUMERS, ALL ITEMS, NORTHEAST REGION, NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED,
 OF THE PREVIOUS YEAR, BUT IN NO EVENT SHALL SUCH  AMOUNT  BE  LESS  THAN
 FOUR  HUNDRED  TWENTY  MILLION  DOLLARS; provided however, seven million
 dollars of the annual allocation shall be available for the empire state
 film post production credit pursuant to section thirty-one of this arti-
 cle in two thousand thirteen and two thousand fourteen  and  twenty-five
 million  dollars  of  the  annual  allocation shall be available for the
 empire state film post production credit pursuant to section  thirty-one
 of  this  article  in each year starting in two thousand fifteen through
 two thousand nineteen. This amount shall be allocated by the  governor's
 office  for motion picture and television development among taxpayers in
 accordance with subdivision (a) of this section. If the commissioner  of
 economic development determines that the aggregate amount of tax credits
 available  from  additional  pool 2 for the empire state film production
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD00071-01-7

 S. 430                              2
 
 tax credit have been previously allocated, and determines that the pend-
 ing applications from eligible applicants for the empire state film post
 production tax credit pursuant to section thirty-one of this article  is
 insufficient  to  utilize  the  balance of unallocated empire state film
 post production tax credits from such pool, the  remainder,  after  such
 pending  applications  are considered, shall be made available for allo-
 cation in the empire state film tax credit  pursuant  to  this  section,
 subdivision  twenty  of section two hundred ten-B and subsection (gg) of
 section six hundred six of this chapter. Also, if  the  commissioner  of
 economic development determines that the aggregate amount of tax credits
 available  from  additional  pool  2  for  the  empire  state  film post
 production tax credit have been  previously  allocated,  and  determines
 that  the  pending  applications from eligible applicants for the empire
 state film production tax credit pursuant to this  section  is  insuffi-
 cient  to utilize the balance of unallocated film production tax credits
 from such pool, then all or part of the remainder,  after  such  pending
 applications  are considered, shall be made available for allocation for
 the empire state film post production credit pursuant to  this  section,
 subdivision  thirty-two of section two hundred ten-B and subsection (qq)
 of section six hundred six of this chapter. The  governor's  office  for
 motion picture and television development must notify taxpayers of their
 allocation  year  and  include the allocation year on the certificate of
 tax credit. Taxpayers eligible to claim a credit must report  the  allo-
 cation  year  directly  on their empire state film production credit tax
 form for each year a credit is claimed and include a copy of the certif-
 icate with their tax return. In  the  case  of  a  qualified  film  that
 receives  funds  from additional pool 2, no empire state film production
 credit shall be claimed  before  the  later  of  the  taxable  year  the
 production  of the qualified film is complete, or the taxable year imme-
 diately following the allocation year for which the film has been  allo-
 cated  credit by the governor's office for motion picture and television
 development.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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