HLS 13RS-631 ORIGINAL
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are additions.
Regular Session, 2013
HOUSE BILL NO. 161
BY REPRESENTATIVE JAMES
TAX CREDITS: Reduces the amount of the income tax credit for state-certified
productions and removes authority to transfer or sell motion picture investor tax
credits
AN ACT1
To amend and reenact R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(introductory paragraph), (c)(i), and (2) and to2
repeal R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(a) and (b), (4), (5), and (7), relative to income tax credits;3
to provide for the motion picture investor tax credit; to provide for the amount of the4
credit; to provide relative to the number of years unused credits may be carried5
forward; to repeal authority of the credit to be transferred or sold; to repeal6
provisions relative to the fee for transferring a credit; to repeal certain provisions7
relative to the Louisiana Filmmakers Grant Fund and the Louisiana Filmmakers8
Grant Program; to provide for an effective date; and to provide for related matters.9
Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:10
Section 1. R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(introductory paragraph), (c)(i), and (2) are hereby11
amended and reenacted to read as follows: 12
ยง6007. Motion picture investor tax credit13
* * *14
C. Investor tax credit; specific productions and projects.15
(1) There is hereby authorized a tax credit against state income tax for16
Louisiana taxpayers for investment in state-certified productions. The tax credit17
shall be earned by investors at the time expenditures are made by a motion picture18
production company in a state-certified production. However, credits cannot be19 HLS 13RS-631 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 161
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applied against a tax or transferred until the expenditures are certified by the office1
and the secretary. For state-certified productions, expenditures shall be certified no2
more than twice during the duration of a state-certified production unless the motion3
picture production company agrees to reimburse the office for the costs of any4
additional certifications. The tax credit shall be calculated as a percentage of the5
total base investment dollars certified per project.6
* * *7
(c) For state-certified productions approved by the office and the secretary8
on or after July 1, 2009:9
(i) If the total base investment is greater than three hundred thousand dollars,10
each investor shall be allowed a tax credit of thirty fifteen percent of the base11
investment made by that investor.12
* * *13
(2) The credit shall be allowed against the income tax for the taxable period14
in which the credit is earned or for the taxable period in which initial certification15
authorizes the credit to be taken. If the tax credit allowed pursuant to this Section16
exceeds the amount of such taxes due for such tax period, then any unused credit17
may be carried forward as a credit against subsequent tax liability for a period not18
to exceed ten five years.19
* * *20
Section 2. R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(a) and (b), (4), (5), and (7) are hereby repealed in21
their entirety.22
Section 3. This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2013; if vetoed by the governor23
and subsequently approved by the legislature, this Act shall become effective on July 1,24
2013, or on the day following such approval by the legislature, whichever is later.25 HLS 13RS-631 ORIGINAL
HB NO. 161
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DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
James HB No. 161
Abstract: Reduces the amount of the income tax credit for state-certified productions from
30% to 15%, changes the number of years a credit can be carried forward from 10
years to 5 years, and deletes authority for the credit to be transferred or sold.
Present law authorizes a tax credit against state income tax for La. taxpayers for investment
in state-certified productions. The tax credit shall be earned at the time expenditures are
made by a motion picture production company in a state-certified production. However,
credits cannot be applied against a tax or transferred until the expenditures are certified. The
tax credit shall be allowed against income tax for the taxable period in which the credit is
earned or in which the initial certification authorizes the credit to be taken. Further provides
that if the amount of the credit exceeds the taxpayer's tax liability, the unused credit may be
carried forward for a period not to exceed 10 years.
Proposed law retains present law but deletes the prohibition of transferring credits until
expenditures are certified and shortens the period for which the tax credit can be carried
forward from a period not to exceed 10 years to a period not to exceed five years.
Present law provides for varying rates for the amount of the tax credit based on the total base
investment for state-certified productions approved by the office and the secretary on or after
Jan. 1, 2004, but before Jan. 1, 2006, and for state-certified productions approved by the
office and the secretary on or after Jan. 1, 2006, but before July 1, 2009.
Proposed law repeals present law since the provisions are obsolete.
Present law provides that, for state-certified productions approved by the office and the
secretary on or after July 1, 2009, if the total base investment is greater than $300,000, each
investor shall be allowed a tax credit of 30% of the base investment made by that investor.
Proposed law reduces the percentage amount of the tax credit from 30% to 15%.
Present law authorizes a taxpayer to transfer or sell any motion picture tax credit not
previously claimed by a taxpayer against income tax subject to certain restrictions. Requires
transferors and transferees to submit written notification to the Governor's Office of Film
and Television Development (hereinafter office) and to the Dept. of Revenue (DOR) of any
transfer or sale of tax credits within 30 days after the transfer or sale of such tax credits. The
notification shall include information such as the transferor's tax credit balance prior to
transfer, the transferor's remaining tax credit balance after transfer, the date of transfer, the
amount transferred, price paid by the transferee to the transferor, and any other required
information. Pricing information submitted by a transferor or transferee shall be treated as
proprietary to the entity reporting such information and therefore confidential.
Present law requires the transfer notification to include a processing fee of up to $200 per
transferee. Present law provides for the deposit of the processing fee into a special fund
created in the state treasury to be known as the La. Filmmakers Grant Fund. The money in
the fund shall be appropriated by the legislature and shall be used solely for the support of
La.'s independent filmmakers through the La. Filmmakers Grant Program. Further requires
the office to award grants to filmmakers domiciled in La. who make a film in La., the total
cost of which shall not exceed $300,000. The maximum amount of a grant shall not exceed
the lesser of 50% of the total cost of the film or $100,000. HLS 13RS-631 ORIGINAL
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Present law provides relative to the disallowance and recapture of a credit if the transferor
did not have rights to claim or use the credit at the time of the transfer.
Proposed law repeals present law provisions relative to the transfer and sale of credits, the
processing fee, and the use of the fee to support the La. Filmmakers Grant Program.
Present law provides that beginning on and after Jan. 1, 2007, an investor may transfer to the
office for 72% of the face value of the credit. Beginning Jan. 1, 2009, and every second year
thereafter, the percent of the face value of the tax credits allowed for transferring credits to
the office shall increase 2% until the percentage reaches 80%. The secretary of DOR shall
make payment to the investor from the current collections of the taxes collected pursuant to
present law. Further provides that for projects which receive initial certification on and
after July 1, 2009, the investor who earned the motion picture investor tax credits may
transfer the credits to the office for 85% of the face value of the credits.
Proposed law repeals present law.
Effective July 1, 2013.
(Amends R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(intro. para.), (c)(i), and (2); Repeals R.S. 47:6007(C)(1)(a) and
(b), (4), (5), and (7))