88R13064 LRM-D
By: Miles S.B. No. 1460
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to incentives for the moving image industry in this state.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 485.021(1), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(1) "In-state spending" means the amount of money
spent in Texas by a production company during the production and
completion of a moving image project, including the amount spent on
wages [to Texas residents]. The term does not include wages
described by Section 485.024(b).
SECTION 2. Section 485.022(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The office shall develop a procedure for the submission
of grant applications and the awarding of grants under this
subchapter. The procedure must include provisions relating to[:
[(1) methods by which an individual's Texas residency
as described by Section 485.021(4) can be proved; and
[(2)] requirements for the submission, before
production of a moving image project begins, of:
(1) [(A)] an estimate of total in-state spending;
(2) [(B)] the shooting script or story board, as
applicable;
(3) [(C)] the estimated number of jobs for cast and
production crew during the production and completion of a moving
image project; and
(4) [(D)] any other information considered useful and
necessary by the office for an adequate and accurate analysis of a
production company's in-state spending.
SECTION 3. Section 485.023, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 485.023. QUALIFICATION. To qualify for a grant under
this subchapter:
(1) a production company must have spent a minimum of:
(A) $250,000 in in-state spending for a film or
television program; or
(B) $100,000 in in-state spending for a
commercial or series of commercials, an educational or
instructional video or series of educational or instructional
videos, or a digital interactive media production;
(2) [at least 70 percent of the production crew,
actors, and extras for a moving image project must be Texas
residents unless the office determines and certifies in writing
that a sufficient number of qualified crew, actors, and extras are
not available to the company at the time principal photography
begins;
[(3)] at least 60 percent of the moving image project
must be filmed in Texas; and
(3) [(4)] a production company must submit to the
office an expended budget, in a format prescribed by the office,
that reflects all in-state spending and includes all receipts,
invoices, pay orders, and other documentation considered necessary
by the office to accurately determine the amount of a production
company's in-state spending that has occurred.
SECTION 4. Sections 485.024(a) and (b), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Section 485.025, a grant under
this subchapter for a moving image project may not be less than 20
percent of the total amount of the production company's in-state
spending on the project [exceed the amount established by office
rule]. The office shall adopt rules prescribing the method the
office will use to calculate the amount of a grant under this
subsection. The office shall publish a written summary of the
method for determining grants before awarding a grant under this
section. The method must consider at a minimum:
(1) the current and likely future effect a moving
image project will have on employment, tourism, and economic
activity in this state; and
(2) the amount of a production company's in-state
spending for a moving image project.
(b) In calculating a grant amount under Section 485.025 or
the amount of in-state spending for purposes of rules adopted under
Subsection (a), the office may not include wages of persons,
including an actor or director, employed in the production of a
moving image project that exceed $500,000 [$1 million].
SECTION 5. Section 485.025, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 485.025. ADDITIONAL GRANT FOR UNDERUTILIZED AND
ECONOMICALLY DISTRESSED AREAS. In addition to the grant calculated
under Section 485.024, a production company that spends at least 25
percent of a moving image project's filming days in an
underutilized and economically distressed area is eligible for an
additional grant in an amount equal to 10 [2.5] percent of the total
amount of the production company's in-state spending for the moving
image project.
SECTION 6. Section 485.021(4), Government Code, is
repealed.
SECTION 7. The changes in law made by this Act to Chapter
485, Government Code, apply only to a grant awarded on or after the
effective date of this Act. A grant awarded before the effective
date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
award was made, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.