Bill Text: NY A07373 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Includes writer's salaries and fees within production costs eligible for the empire state film production credit.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-28 - print number 7373a [A07373 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A07373-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        7373--A
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                     May 14, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced by M. of A. WRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee
         on Ways and Means -- recommitted to the Committee on Ways and Means in
         accordance  with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill
         amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
         tee
       AN  ACT  to amend the tax law, in relation to eligibility for the empire
         state film production credit
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Paragraph  1  of subdivision (a) of section 24 of the tax
    2  law, as amended by section 3 of part Q of chapter  57  of  the  laws  of
    3  2010, is amended to read as follows:
    4    (1)  Allowance  of  credit.  A  taxpayer  which  is  a  qualified film
    5  production company, or a qualified independent film production  company,
    6  or which is a sole proprietor of or a member of a partnership which is a
    7  qualified  film  production  company  or  a  qualified  independent film
    8  production company, and which is subject to tax under articles nine-A or
    9  twenty-two of this chapter, shall be allowed a credit against such  tax,
   10  pursuant  to  the provisions referenced in subdivision [(c)] (E) of this
   11  section, to be computed as [hereinafter] provided IN THIS SECTION.
   12    S 2. Paragraph 2 of subdivision (b) of section 24 of the tax  law,  as
   13  added  by  section  1  of  part  P of chapter 60 of the laws of 2004, is
   14  amended and a new paragraph 9 is added to read as follows:
   15    (2) "Production costs" means any costs for tangible property used  and
   16  services performed directly and predominantly in the production (includ-
   17  ing   pre-production   and   post   production)  of  a  qualified  film.
   18  "Production costs" shall not include [(i) costs for a story,  script  or
   19  scenario  to be used for a qualified film and (ii)] wages or salaries or
   20  other compensation for writers, directors,  including  music  directors,
   21  producers  and performers (other than background actors with no scripted
   22  lines). WRITERS' FEES AND SALARIES SHALL BE  ELIGIBLE  PRODUCTION  COSTS
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD10927-03-4
       A. 7373--A                          2
    1  SUBJECT  TO THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION (C) OF THIS SECTION; PROVIDED,
    2  HOWEVER, THAT FEES THAT ARE  BASED  ON  DEFERRED,  LEVERAGED  OR  PROFIT
    3  PARTICIPATION  COSTS,  OR  ARE IN EXCESS OF THOSE OTHERWISE PERMITTED BY
    4  SUBDIVISION  (C) OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT BE ELIGIBLE PRODUCTION COSTS.
    5  "Production costs"  generally  include  technical  and  crew  production
    6  costs,  such as expenditures for film production facilities, or any part
    7  thereof, props, makeup, wardrobe, film processing, camera, sound record-
    8  ing, set construction, lighting, shooting, editing and meals.
    9    (9) "WRITER" MEANS A WRITER EMPLOYED OR RETAINED TO  WRITE  OR  REVISE
   10  SCRIPTS,   SCREENPLAYS,   TELEPLAYS,  DIALOGUE,  SKETCHES,  ROUTINES  OR
   11  NARRATIONS.
   12    S 3. Subdivisions (c), (d) and (e) of section 24 of the  tax  law  are
   13  relettered  subdivisions  (e),  (f)  and  (g),  respectively and two new
   14  subdivisions (c) and (d) are added to read as follows:
   15    (C) FOR A FEATURE FILM OR TELEVISION  PRODUCTION,  WRITERS'  FEES  AND
   16  SALARIES  SHALL  BE  ELIGIBLE COSTS; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, SUCH COSTS SHALL
   17  NOT EXCEED FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS IN FEES OR SALARY PER WRITER PER QUAL-
   18  IFIED FILM AND PROVIDED THAT SUCH WRITER IS A MINORITY GROUP MEMBER,  AS
   19  DEFINED  BY SUBDIVISION EIGHT OF SECTION THREE HUNDRED TEN OF THE EXECU-
   20  TIVE LAW, OR A WOMAN.
   21    PROVIDED, FURTHER, THAT, NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION  OF  THIS
   22  SECTION,  A  WRITER'S  FEES AND SALARY SHALL BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE MAXIMUM
   23  AMOUNT OF THE CREDIT GRANTED BY THIS SUBDIVISION, IF SUCH  WRITER  IS  A
   24  RESIDENT OF THIS STATE.
   25    (D)  FOR EACH TAX YEAR, NOT MORE THAN THREE MILLION FIVE HUNDRED THOU-
   26  SAND DOLLARS IN TAX CREDITS FOR WRITERS'  FEES  AND  SALARIES  SHALL  BE
   27  GRANTED  PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.  SUCH CREDITS SHALL ONLY BE AVAILABLE
   28  FROM CREDITS ALLOWED FOR PRODUCTION COSTS PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
   29    S 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
   30  it shall have become a law and shall apply to the tax year in  which  it
   31  takes effect and all subsequent tax years.