The introduction of Senate Bill 630 and Assembly Bill 1138 aims to provide California with a competitive advantage in its quest to retain and bring back production jobs that are vital to the entertainment industry. The bills were introduced by Senator Ben Allen, Assembly Members, Rick Chavez Zbur, and Isaac Bryan, with a focus on job creation and promise to diversify the types of productions that qualify for California’s Film and Television Tax Credit program. SB 630 and AB 1138 will be referred to respective policy committees over the coming weeks. Governor Gavin Newsom has also unveiled plans to more than double California’s current tax credit cap to provide much-needed relief for the entertainment industry following COVID-19 shutdowns, the strikes, LA wildfires and mass exodus of film and television production from California.
- SB 630 and AB 1138 are intended to amend, update, and modernize California’s Film and Television Tax Credit Program, with the stated goal of protecting and bringing back jobs that have left, and continue to leave California for other more lucrative production locations, and to ensure that California remains competitive in the industry. SB 630 and AB 1138 would increase the rebate by an unspecified amount from the 20% that is currently offered to most productions in California. Each law would also expand types of productions that are eligible for the tax incentives, by including animation, game shows, and other unscripted programming, each of which is currently excluded.
In an effort to bolster this momentum, the Entertainment Union Coalition has launched a campaign called “Keep California Rolling”, which aims to keep film and television jobs in California.” The initiative is labor-led and its main purpose is to emphasize the importance of exploring new ways to attract film and television production back to the state, as well as support Governor Newsom’s proposal to expand the California Film & TV Tax Credit from $330 million annually to $750 million. However, though likely to be approved, this expansion hinges on California’s 2025-2026 budget which is currently being negotiated.
Several member entities of the Entertainment Union Coalition have traveled to Sacramento to lobby lawmakers in support of this jobs-based program, including the Directors Guild of America, LiUNA! Local 724, SAG-AFTRA, Teamsters Local 399, Writers Guild of America West, California IATSE Council, and the American Federation of Musicians. Collectively, the Entertainment Union Coalition represents over 165,000 members who live and work in California’s entertainment industry. If Governor Newsom’s proposal passes, it will prove to be the most significant expansion to the program in decades.
Production jobs being lured away to different territories has been an issue plaguing California for decades, as the financial incentives in other states and countries have proven too lucrative to pass up--Georgia, Ontario and the United Kingdom have no caps on their subsidies for film and television productions. According to recent reports from FilmLA and the Entertainment Union Coalition, production in Los Angeles was down 30% over five-year averages in 2024 and approximately 50% of the 312 productions did not qualify for California’s tax credit incentive from 2015 to 2020. SB 630 and AB 1138 aim to change that trajectory and create a sustainable environment that keeps jobs and economic benefits in California.
*Also authored by Jennifer Hays an intern in the firm’s Century City office.