L.A. Council Backs Incentives for Film Industry

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More local incentives are on their way to aid filming in Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved Wednesday a package of incentives aimed keeping and attracting film production.

Council President Eric Garcetti had introduced the package last year after producers of the hit television comedy Ugly Betty announced they were moving production to New York in part because of the high cost of filming in Los Angeles.

The incentive package includes measures to reduce parking costs for film crews and the installation of power modules in often-used film locations to eliminate the need for expensive, noisy and highly-polluting portable generators.

The Council also voted to order the city’s Office of Finance to study how to reduce business license taxes for film production-related companies filming in city limits and report back with recommendations later this year.

Last month, as part of the state budget agreement, state lawmakers inserted a $500 million tax incentive for production companies that film within the state.

In recent years, increasing numbers of productions have opted to shoot in lower cost states, taking advantage of lucrative incentives offered by state and local governments. Previous attempts to pass incentives in California failed amid opposition from Republican lawmakers claiming they were giveaways of taxpayer money.

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Howard Fine
Howard Fine is a 23-year veteran of the Los Angeles Business Journal. He covers stories pertaining to healthcare, biomedicine, energy, engineering, construction, and infrastructure. He has won several awards, including Best Body of Work for a single reporter from the Alliance of Area Business Publishers and Distinguished Journalist of the Year from the Society of Professional Journalists.

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