Politics & Government

Eagan Senator Sponsors Tax Break for Filmmakers

The proposed bill would give qualifying filmmakers a tax credit equal to 25 percent of an individual or company's production expenses for the project.

Eagan Sen. Ted Daley (R) hopes a tax incentive will entice movie production companies to bring their money—and jobs—to Minnesota.

Last week, Daley introduced a bill that would give filmmakers shooting in Minnesota a tax credit equal to 25 percent of an individual or company's qualifying production expenses for the project. Rep. Greg Davids (R) originally introduced the measure in the Minnesota House of Representatives on March 5. Daley is sponsoring the Senate's companion bill, which was referred to the Senate's Taxes Committee for consideration.

In order to receive the credit, the applicant must meet several criteria, according to Daley's bill. The movie must be a feature-length film or nationally syndicated TV series, and the producers of the project must have been certified by the Minnesota Film and TV Board. The project must be shot entirely in Minnesota, and only certain production expenses incurred in the state can be counted toward the credit.

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Because the state doesn't offer any film production incentives, Minnesota is at a competitive disadvantage to the 40 states in the country that do offer tax breaks and other benefits to production companies, Daley said. The incentive, Daley believes, would help attract development and jobs to Minnesota.

Daley's interest in the topic was galvanized by a recent conversation with the producers of "Memorial Day"—a Minnesota-made movie charting the parallel experiences of a father and son who are both veterans. The lack of any tax incentive was a challenge for the makers of Memorial Day, said Daley, who met the movie's producers.

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“The private sector jobs, that's really what this is about; attracting those kinds of companies that want to film here in Minnesota," Daley said. "We don't have as many jobs in this industry as we should have."

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