Signed by Governor Gavin Newsom

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to concur with Senate amendments and pass a bill that expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California.

Highlights:

• Expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that if a qualified taxpayer is a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes, it would additionally allow that qualified taxpayer to elect to assign any portion of a motion picture credit to one or more affiliated corporations, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Expands the definition of a qualified taxpayer to include a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the definition of qualified motion picture to include live action and animated series with episodes averaging 20 minutes or more, animated films, and large-scale competition shows, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that a television series that completed principal photography on the previous season more than 48 months prior to applying for an allocation of this credit is considered a new television series for purposes of the definition of qualified motion picture, unless certain conditions are met (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the credit amount allowed for a qualified motion picture to 35% or 40%, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the amount of qualified expenditures the California Film Commission is allowed to consider when determining the credit amount allocated to a qualified motion picture (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the allocation limitations for specified qualified motion pictures within that aggregate amount and additionally corrects erroneous cross-references in those provisions by requiring additional moneys to be paid from the Tax Relief and Refund Account, a continuously appropriated fund (Sec. 1-6).

• Limits the amount of credits received by a recurring television series to the sum of the base year allocation and the product of the base year allocation, the number of subsequent years, and 3%, as those terms are defined (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission to expand the number of nonprofit organizations that partner with the Career Pathways Program, and would require the California Film Commission to establish an application process for nonprofit organizations to obtain approval as a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the application to meet specified requirements to be approved and would provide criteria for the California Film Commission to consider when approving applications (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission, before July 1, 2026, to develop criteria to incentivize the placement of trainees from the Career Pathways Program in qualified productions, and for the motion picture credit 4.0, would authorize the California Film Commission to increase the credit amount up to 2% of the credit amount allocated for qualified productions that employ trainees from a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that the provisions of this bill declare an emergency and shall take effect immediately upon passage and approval by the Governor (Sec. 7).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to amend and pass a bill that expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California.

Highlights:

• Expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that if a qualified taxpayer is a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes, it would additionally allow that qualified taxpayer to elect to assign any portion of a motion picture credit to one or more affiliated corporations, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Expands the definition of a qualified taxpayer to include a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the definition of qualified motion picture to include live action and animated series with episodes averaging 20 minutes or more, animated films, and large-scale competition shows, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that a television series that completed principal photography on the previous season more than 48 months prior to applying for an allocation of this credit is considered a new television series for purposes of the definition of qualified motion picture, unless certain conditions are met (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the credit amount allowed for a qualified motion picture to 35% or 40%, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the amount of qualified expenditures the California Film Commission is allowed to consider when determining the credit amount allocated to a qualified motion picture (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the allocation limitations for specified qualified motion pictures within that aggregate amount and additionally corrects erroneous cross-references in those provisions by requiring additional moneys to be paid from the Tax Relief and Refund Account, a continuously appropriated fund (Sec. 1-6).

• Limits the amount of credits received by a recurring television series to the sum of the base year allocation and the product of the base year allocation, the number of subsequent years, and 3%, as those terms are defined (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission to expand the number of nonprofit organizations that partner with the Career Pathways Program, and would require the California Film Commission to establish an application process for nonprofit organizations to obtain approval as a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the application to meet specified requirements to be approved and would provide criteria for the California Film Commission to consider when approving applications (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission, before July 1, 2026, to develop criteria to incentivize the placement of trainees from the Career Pathways Program in qualified productions, and for the motion picture credit 4.0, would authorize the California Film Commission to increase the credit amount up to 2% of the credit amount allocated for qualified productions that employ trainees from a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that the provisions of this bill declare an emergency and shall take effect immediately upon passage and approval by the Governor (Sec. 7).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California.

Highlights:

• Expands the state's film and television tax credit program by increasing funding, widening eligibility, and increasing diversity to support in-state production and economic growth in California (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that if a qualified taxpayer is a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes, it would additionally allow that qualified taxpayer to elect to assign any portion of a motion picture credit to one or more affiliated corporations, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Expands the definition of a qualified taxpayer to include a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded for tax purposes (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the definition of qualified motion picture to include live action and animated series with episodes averaging 20 minutes or more, animated films, and large-scale competition shows, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that a television series that completed principal photography on the previous season more than 48 months prior to applying for an allocation of this credit is considered a new television series for purposes of the definition of qualified motion picture, unless certain conditions are met (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the credit amount allowed for a qualified motion picture to 35% or 40%, as specified (Sec. 1-6).

• Increases the amount of qualified expenditures the California Film Commission is allowed to consider when determining the credit amount allocated to a qualified motion picture (Sec. 1-6).

• Amends and revises the allocation limitations for specified qualified motion pictures within that aggregate amount and additionally corrects erroneous cross-references in those provisions by requiring additional moneys to be paid from the Tax Relief and Refund Account, a continuously appropriated fund (Sec. 1-6).

• Limits the amount of credits received by a recurring television series to the sum of the base year allocation and the product of the base year allocation, the number of subsequent years, and 3%, as those terms are defined (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission to expand the number of nonprofit organizations that partner with the Career Pathways Program, and would require the California Film Commission to establish an application process for nonprofit organizations to obtain approval as a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the application to meet specified requirements to be approved and would provide criteria for the California Film Commission to consider when approving applications (Sec. 1-6).

• Requires the California Film Commission, before July 1, 2026, to develop criteria to incentivize the placement of trainees from the Career Pathways Program in qualified productions, and for the motion picture credit 4.0, would authorize the California Film Commission to increase the credit amount up to 2% of the credit amount allocated for qualified productions that employ trainees from a Career Pathways Program (Sec. 1-6).

• Specifies that the provisions of this bill declare an emergency and shall take effect immediately upon passage and approval by the Governor (Sec. 7).

Full Bill Text