The following recently arrived in my inbox via Trevanna. The subject of the status of New York (State) Film & TV Tax Credits is currently a topic of great interest to many people in the production industry:
Greetings. Silvercup Studios initiated this powerful letter, so I’m forwarding it on. If you’ve wanted to do something to help keep the New York tax credits, this is a great way to do it. (It is different than the petition to Governor Paterson that many of you may already have signed.)
All the information you need is below. Please read the rest of this email, and then click on the link to the SAMPLE LETTER and actually print and send it out.
Feel free to forward this to anyone you know affected by the entertainment industry in New York. Thank you!
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February, 2009
Dear Producers, Union Officials, Vendors and other stakeholders in the NY Film/TV business,
As you may be aware, the very successful New York State and New York City Film/Television Tax Credit Program, which brought productions and therefore thousands of jobs to New York, have reached their financial limits. Governor Paterson has said there is no additional funding for the tax credits included in his latest budget proposal. This means that the credits that encouraged many of you/others to keep filming or bring filming here in New York State would disappear unless there is intervention by the New York State Assembly and Senate.
We all depend on a healthy film and television industry for our livelihood. Keeping filming here in New York had been a tremendous challenge over the past several years as competition from other states and countries had led to a major reduction in the number of film and television productions able to shoot in New York. The 2004/2007 tax credits changed that. According to one study the state and city combined have allocated $690 million in tax credits and have collected $2.7 billion in taxes from movie and televisions productions. The study also found that during 2007, New York’s movie and TV industry created 7,031 jobs directly and an additional 12,481 indirectly.
With funding not included in the current budget proposal, State lawmakers will have to step in and add the tax credits to the budget. By alerting each of our New York Assemblymen and State Senators to the crisis this loss would create, we can help them by sending a significant message that the State needs to do what it can to keep our productions and preserve and grow the jobs they create, here in New York.
To that end, we are asking you to show your support by urging your staff, members and crew to write letters to their New York State Assembly members and New York State Senators alerting them to the critical nature of how the loss of film and television tax credit would be detrimental to their livelihood, the city, and small businesses, etc. (Links to websites to find out who they are in your area are listed below.) We are aware that there has been a very successful petition drive addressing this issue, however, we have been advised that constituent letters are critical at this time.
To search by zip code to find your New York State Assembly please go to: http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/
To search by zip code to find your New York State Senator please go to: http://www.senate.state.ny.us/senatehomepage.nsf/senators?OpenForm
Here is a link to a SAMPLE LETTER for this purpose. They should include their years of experience and how the boom in production (and its loss) has affected you (might affect you).
http://www.trevanna.com/ny-production-tax.htm
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