25 HB 475/AP
House Bill 475 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representatives Gambill of the 15
th
, McDonald III of the 26
th
, Wade of the 9
th
, Hong of
the 103
rd
, Blackmon of the 146
th
, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 48-7-40.26 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
1
income tax credits for film, gaming, video, or digital production, so as to revise a definition;2
to revise rules and regulations; to authorize certain fees; to require companies to pay court3
costs if the denial of certification is upheld by a court on appeal; to provide for related4
matters; to provide for an effective date and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for5
other purposes.6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:7
SECTION 1.8
Code Section 48-7-40.26 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to income tax9
credits for film, gaming, video, or digital production, is amended by revising paragraph (11)10
of subsection (b) as follows:11
"(11) 'Qualified production activities' means the production of new film, video, or digital12
projects produced in this state and approved by the Department of Economic13
Development as state certified productions, including only the following: feature films,14
series, pilots, movies for television, televised
commercial advertisements, music videos,15
interactive entertainment, or prereleased interactive games. Such activities shall include16
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projects recorded in this state, in whole or in part, in either short or long form, animation
17
and music, fixed on a delivery system which includes without limitation film, videotape,18
computer disc, laser disc,
and any element of the digital domain, from which the program19
is viewed or reproduced, and which is intended for multimarket commercial distribution20
via theaters, video on demand, direct to DVD, digital platforms designed for the21
distribution of interactive games, licensing for exhibition by individual television stations,22
groups of stations, networks, advertiser supported sites, paid subscription based23
platforms, free advertiser supported streaming television (FAST) channels, cable24
television stations, or public broadcasting stations. Such term shall not include the25
coverage of news or athletic events, local interest programming, instructional videos,26
corporate videos, any project that is not intended for multimarket commercial27
distribution, user-generated content distributed exclusively via social media platforms,28
or any project not shot, recorded, or originally created in Georgia."29
SECTION 2.30
Said Code section is further amended by revising subsection (i) as follows: 31
"(i)(1) The Department of Economic Development shall determine through the32
promulgation of rules and regulations what projects qualify for the tax credits authorized33
under this Code section. Such rules and regulations shall include, but not be limited to,34
certification application deadlines, qualified project content types and distribution35
methods, certification application process and required supporting documentation, and36
certification application fees. Certification shall be submitted to the state revenue37
commissioner.38
(2) The Department of Economic Development may charge reasonable fees associated39
with the certification process established pursuant to this subsection and such fees shall be40
remitted to the state general fund.41
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(3) If the Department of Economic Development prevails in the litigation of an appeal42
on the denial of certification, the plaintiff production company shall pay all court costs43
associated with such litigation."44
SECTION 3.45
This Act shall become effective on January 1, 2026, and shall be applicable to taxable years46
beginning on or after such date.47
SECTION 4.48
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.49
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