A public hearing on whether the Connecticut Film & Digital Media tax credit will be eliminated is Monday, Feb. 23, at 11:30 a.m. in Room 2E of the Legislative Office Building in Hartford.
For the economic importance of the tax credit, see Connecticut Production Coalition (CPC) fact sheet at this link.
The Legislative Office Building is located at 300 Capitol Ave., Hartford. For tips on parking, who to talk with, key points to know and more, see this document.
The state is looking to cut a program that costs $90 million. According to CPC key points, "offsetting tax revenues are generated through direct expenditures and payroll taxes and substantial indirect tax revenues created by the increased economic activity. Over the past two years, Connecticut went from $750,000 to more than $600 million [in film and digital media production], which brought estimated $1.5 billion in economic activity to the state.
"For every dollar of incentive paid, more than $16 of economic activity was generated, translating into significant tax revenues."
To compare other states efforts:
New York: Tax credit generates 19,500 jobs; 7,000 direct production jobs and 12,500 from directly related economic activity. State yields $404 million in tax revenue, at a cost of $215 million in credits. Source: Ernst & Young; January 2009.
New Mexico: Tax credit created total employment of 9,210 jobs. State receives $1.50 in tax revenue for every dollar invested in production tax credits. Source: Ernst & Young; Prepared for the New Mexico State Investment Council; January 2009.
Massachusetts: $545 million spent on film production yields economic impact of $1.36 billion. Cost to state is five cents for every new dollar of economic activity. Source: Massachusetts Film Office; www.mafilm.org; January 2009.
