Bill Text: CA AB1421 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: The San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Failed) 2024-02-01 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB1421 Detail]
Download: California-2023-AB1421-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Assembly
March 22, 2023 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 1421
| Introduced by Assembly Member Alvarez |
February 17, 2023 |
An act to add and repeal Division 6 (commencing with Section 33300) of Title 3 of the Government Code, relating to the County of San Diego, and making an appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1421, as amended, Alvarez.
The San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program.
Existing law establishes the County of San Diego and various offices within the county for administration of the county government.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws, including motion picture credits for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020, to be allocated by the California Film Commission on or after July 1, 2020, and before July 1, 2025.
This bill would establish the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program to be administered by the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Office within the County of San Diego for purposes of awarding grants, beginning on July 1, 2024, to qualified projects that, among other things, have a production budget with at least 70% of
expenditures to laborers, retailers, or suppliers who are permanent residents of the County of San Diego. The bill would require an applicant to submit a specified application to the office, and would require the office to award grants in order of priority based on the ratio of the total moneys expected to be paid by the applicant as wages to laborers who are permanent residents of the County of San Diego divided by the total production budget. The bill would appropriate $25,000,000 to the County of San Diego over a 3-year period for purposes of the program. program, including administrative costs. The bill would require the office to submit, on or before January 1, 2027, a report to the Legislature and the California Film Commission on the results of the program. By placing new requirements on the County of San Diego,
the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2028.
This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Diego.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Digest Key
Vote: 2/3 Appropriation: YES Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YESBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Division 6 (commencing with Section 33300) is added to Title 3 of the Government Code, to read:DIVISION 6. The San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program
CHAPTER 1. General Provisions
33300.
There is hereby established the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program to be administered by the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Office within the County of San Diego for purposes of awarding grants to qualified projects to incentivize and attract small-budget independent film and television production to the County of San Diego.33301.
For purposes of this division, the following definitions shall apply:(a) “Jobs ratio” means the San Diego qualified expenditures expected to be paid as wages to laborers who are permanent residents of the County of San Diego divided by the total production budget.
(b) “Non-San Diego qualifying expenditures” means amounts paid or incurred for tangible personal property purchased or leased, and used, within the County of San Diego to laborers, retailers, or suppliers who are not permanent residents of the County of San Diego but who are permanent residents of the state.
(c) “Office” means the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Office within the County of San Diego.
(d) “Program” means the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program.
(e) “Qualifying project” means a motion picture, movie, or film that is produced for distribution to the general public, regardless of medium, that meets all of the following requirements:
(1) The project has a total production budget of no less than two one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000)
($150,000) and no more than nine hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine dollars ($999,999).
(2) At least 70 percent of the production budget consists of San Diego qualifying expenditures.
(3) The applicant can demonstrate that the applicant has secured the appropriate financial resources required to complete the project.
(4) The applicant can demonstrate that principal photography is set to commence within 9 months of the project’s application approval date and will be completed within 12 months of the commencement of filming.
(f) “San Diego qualifying expenditures” means amounts paid or incurred
for tangible personal property purchased or leased, and used, within the County of San Diego to laborers, retailers, or suppliers who are permanent residents of the County of San Diego.
33302.
(a) There is hereby established in the State Treasury the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Fund. Notwithstanding Section 13340, moneys in the fund are hereby continuously appropriated without regard to fiscal years for purposes of this division.(b) Notwithstanding Section 13340, the Controller shall, on January 1, 2024, transfer from the General Fund to the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Fund the sum of twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,000).
(c) The Controller shall transfer moneys from the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program
Fund to the County of San Diego for the purposes of this division as follows:
(1) Within 30 days of the transfer in subdivision (b), the Controller shall transfer from the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Fund to the County of San Diego the sum of seven million dollars ($7,000,000).
(2) On July 1, 2025, the Controller shall transfer from the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Fund to the County of San Diego the sum of sixteen million dollars ($16,000,000).
(3) On July 1, 2026, the Controller shall transfer from the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Fund to the County of San Diego all remaining moneys in the San Diego Regional Film Financial
Incentive Pilot Program Fund.
CHAPTER 2. Administration
33310.
(a) The County of San Diego shall establish the San Diego Regional Film Financial Incentive Pilot Program Office within the County of San Diego under the direction of the Chief Administrative Officer of the County of San Diego.(b) The office shall consist of at least the following employee positions:
(1) A general manager to oversee and coordinate marketing and operations.
(2) A director of finance and operations to manage money and operations.
(3) A director of marketing to
conduct and manage a worldwide marketing campaign.
(4) A director of film production to administer film productions that qualify for a grant.
(5) Administrative staff as necessary to assist directors and to perform other operational functions.
(c) The general manager shall be appointed by the Board of Supervisors of the County of San Diego representative from District 4. Chief Administrative Office of the County of San Diego.
(d) Moneys transferred to the County of San Diego under Section 33302 may be used by the County of San Diego for administrative costs necessary to implement this division.
33311.
(a) The office shall administer the program pursuant to this division.(b) Office employees shall additionally assist grantees with all of the following:
(1) Developing the project.
(2) Meeting required deadlines.
(3) Budgeting and use of the grant funds within the guidelines required by this division and prescribed by the office.
(c) The office shall promote and market the program throughout the United States and
internationally.
CHAPTER 3. Grant Awards
33320.
Each applicant for a grant under this division shall submit an application to the office, in a form and manner prescribed by the office, containing all of the following information:(a) All relevant documentation needed to establish that the project is a qualifying project.
(b) The budget for the project.
(c) The number of production days.
(d) A financing plan for the project.
(e) The diversity of the workforce employed by the applicant, including,
but not limited to, the ethnic and racial makeup of the
individuals employed by the applicant during the production of the qualified project, to the extent possible.
(f) Financial information, if available, including, but not limited to, the most recently produced balance sheets, annual statements of profits and losses, audited or unaudited financial statements, summary budget projections or results, or the functional equivalent of these documents of a partnership or owner of a single-member limited liability company that is disregarded pursuant to Section 23038 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. The information provided pursuant to this clause shall be confidential and shall not be subject to public disclosure.
(g) The names of all partners in a partnership not publicly traded or the names of all members of a limited
liability company classified as a partnership not publicly traded for California income tax purposes that have a financial interest in the applicant’s qualified motion picture. The information provided pursuant to this clause shall be confidential and shall not be subject to public disclosure.
(h) The amount of wages the applicant expects to pay to employees.
(i) The amount of the grant the applicant computes the qualified motion picture expects will be allocated.
(j) A statement establishing that the grant described in this division is a significant factor in the applicant’s choice of location for the qualified project. The statement shall include information about whether the qualified project is at risk of not
being filmed or specify the jurisdiction or jurisdictions in which the qualified project will be located in the absence of the grant. The statement shall be signed by an officer or executive of the applicant.
(k) The applicant’s written policy against unlawful harassment, including, but not limited to, sexual harassment, that includes procedures for reporting and investigating harassment claims, a phone number for an individual who will be responsible for receiving harassment claims, and a statement that the company will not retaliate against an individual who reports harassment. The applicant shall also indicate how the policy will be distributed to employees and include a summary of education training resources, including the prohibition against, and prevention and correction of, sexual harassment and remedies available.
(l) The ethnic and racial makeup and gender of individuals who will be paid wages by the applicant.
(m) A summary of the applicant’s voluntary programs to increase the representation of minorities and women.
(n) Any other information the office deems relevant or necessary for purposes of the program.
33321.
(a) The office shall review applications and award grants on January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year, beginning on July 1, 2024.(b) The office shall award grants to qualified projects who meet the application requirements in Section 33320 beginning with the applicant with the highest job ratio, until all grant moneys are exhausted.
(c) The office shall inform applicants of whether they were awarded a grant, and of the amount of moneys awarded, within six months of submission of the application.
(d) Each grant awarded
shall be in an amount equal to the sum of 30 percent of the qualified project’s San Diego qualifying expenditures and 20 percent of the qualified project’s non-San Diego qualifying expenditures.
(e) The office shall disperse moneys awarded under this section according to the following schedule:
(1) Ten percent of the moneys shall be dispersed 30 days before commencement of principal photography.
(2) Twenty percent of the moneys shall be dispersed upon commencement of principal photography.
(3) Twenty percent of the moneys shall be dispersed upon completion of principal photography.
(4) Ten percent of
the moneys shall be dispersed 30 days after completion of principal photography.
(5) Twenty percent of the moneys shall be dispersed upon completion of the project and delivery of the final project to the office for verification.
(6) (A) Twenty percent of the moneys shall be dispersed upon verification by the office of all project expenditures.
(B) The office shall complete the final project verification within six months of receipt of all expenditure documentation.
33322.
(a) A grantee shall begin principal photography within 9 months of the qualified project’s application approval date and shall complete principal photography within 12 months of the commencement of filming.(b) The office may provide extensions to the periods established in subdivision (a) at its discretion.
