California\u2019s economy might see a boost from the state\u2019s expanded film tax credits, but local lawmakers say it\u2019s not enough.<\/p>\n
Despite Gov. Gavin Newsom authorizing a $750-million film and TV tax credit program<\/a> last summer, the impending merger between Paramount and Warner Bros.<\/a> and the projected budget cuts<\/a> that are expected to follow, have reignited fears about Hollywood jobs and U.S.-based productions.<\/p>\n \u201cState programs cannot simply substitute for the kind of global, federal and competitive tax incentives that are needed to bring production back to American soil and stop its offshoring,\u201d U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said <\/a>during a news conference Friday morning.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must act, and the urgency could not be greater,\u201d he said. Schiff said he is working on a bipartisan federal film incentive proposal that would be competitive with what other countries are offering for film productions.<\/p>\n He said the program isn\u2019t about Hollywood\u2019s stars; it\u2019s about the jobs that productions create, including roles for set designers, carpenters and lighting crews. <\/p>\n \u201cThese are the people who make that magic happen. We want to keep those jobs here, and many of us are deeply concerned about what this potential merger will do to those jobs,\u201d Schiff said.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, the California Film Commission<\/a> revealed that 16 shows had recently received tax credits for filming in the state. The projects represent $871 million in qualified in-state spending and are expected to generate $1.3 billion in economic activity in California. Schiff said the state tax credit has generated more than $29.1 billion in motion picture production wages and supported more than 220,000 jobs.<\/p>\n Even as shows start to see gains in Southern California, Los Angeles film activity was still down 13.2% from July through September when compared with the same period in 2024, according FilmL.A. Inc., which handles film permits for the region.<\/p>\n The downward trend extends the loss of 42,000 jobs in L.A. between 2022 and 2024, the continued suffering of local sound stages<\/a> and the offshoring of productions internationally.<\/p>\n \u201cFederal policymakers must act to level the playing field and make the U.S. film and television industry more competitive on the global stage,\u201d said Matthew Loeb, the president\u202fof the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. \u201cA globally competitive labor-based and tax incentive is. For us, production that supplements state incentives is essential to return and maintain film and television jobs in America.\u201d<\/p>\n