Newsom, Bass unveil significant proposal to enhance state's annual film tax credits

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass unveiled a proposal to more than double the tax credit the state offers to producers of films and TV shows that shoot in California.

The proposal would increase California's annual film and TV tax credit from $330 million to $750 million, but must be approved by California's legislature.

"We needed to make a statement, and we needed to do something that was meaningful and not just intentional," Newsom said at a joint press conference with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and industry leaders. "We put this new marker out: $750 million."

"This is about working folks. This is about building a sense of community," Newsom said, cautioning, however, that the plan was still a "proposal" that would require help and support to get approved.

Los Angeles, long considered the center of film and TV production nationwide, has struggled to retain its hold in recent years, losing business to other states that offer more attractive incentives, most prominently New York and Georgia.

"One message we want to send from the mayor's office is we have your back," Mayor Karen Bass said. "We have to do everything we can to strengthen and protect one of the foundational pillars of our economy in Los Angeles."

Bass said, with tens of thousands of Angelenos working in the industry, the goal was to keep production local and support and streamline the workforce.

"We all need to join forces and make sure that we keep our significant industry," Bass said. "Just like we are going to do in the World Series, we have to make sure that we stay ahead of New York."

Newsom called the production slowdown a "legitimate crisis," which he said reinforced the need to do something "big and bold."

"We are in a position where we can afford this. And we need to do this. This is about jobs, this is about investment," Newsom said. "There is an old saying: If you want to do well in the future, you gotta invest in the future." 

According to Newsom and Bass, the state supports over 700,000 jobs in film and TV and generates nearly $70 billion in wages for local workers.

In August, Bass reaffirmed the city's commitment to LA's entertainment sector by issuing an eighth executive directive designed to enhance city department processes by allocating staff and resources to support local film production and permitting.