New Draft of HB1590 Posted

The Senate WAM has posted HB1590, HD2, SD2, the latest draft of the remaining refundable production tax credit bill. The only major change from the previous draft is reducing the $8M cap down to $1 (yes, that's one dollar) to allow for further discussion in conference. Here are the primary provisions once again:

* 15-20% refundable tax credit for film, TV, digital media, photography, and sound recording expenditures (15% on Oahu, 20% on neighbor islands)
* ___% additional wage reimbursement credit for Hawaii residents
* $1 cap per production (for discussion purposes)
* $200K min. Hawaii spend per production ($20K for sound recording)
* No "double-dipping" between this credit and the High technology business invesment tax credit (Act 221)
* To receive either the 15-20% credit or the Act 221 credit, a production or qualified performing arts co. must provide evidence of support for educational or workforce development in the film, tv, digital media, or performing arts industries
* Productions must register with the Hawaii film office during development or pre-production
* Productions must report the number of local vs. non-local hires

The bill will now bounce back to the House, which has until tomorrow, 4/12, to log its disagreement with this latest draft. We expect the House to disagree, so a conference committee consisting of both reps and senators will be formed to hash out a draft both sides can agree on.

Stay tuned for who's going to be on the conference committee...