Bill AB 2026 passed the California State Assembly yesterday. Authored by Assembly Member Felipe Fuentes, the bill extends the California Film & Television Tax Credit Program for an additional two years.
A broad coalition of unions and guilds representing labor and the entertainment industry – including IATSE, SAG-AFTRA, the DGA, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 399, Professional Musicians Local 47 and the Recording Musicians Association – joined together to applaud the passage of AB 2026, in a joint statement that read: “… Without the extension, the State of California will have no chance of competing with more than 40 states and many foreign countries that offer generous incentive programs to retain and attract qualified motion pictures and television programs, resulting in the loss of tens of thousands of middle class jobs and all the ancillary economic benefits that a thriving entertainment industry brings to the economy.
“We thank Assembly Member Fuentes for his commitment to the men and women making a living in the entertainment community and we urge the California State Senate to do all it can to keep jobs in California by voting to approve the extension of the California production tax incentive bill.”
As Below the Line reported earlier this week, the bill must still be reconciled with a Senate version of the bill – SB1167, authored by Sen. Ron Calderon, (D-South Los Angeles, District 30), before the current session ends, Aug. 31. Gov. Jerry Brown would then have until the end of September to decide whether to sign such legislation.
