State Rep. Pete Lund said Michigan is learning the hard way that the movie industry isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
“Michigan has a $1.7 billion budget deficit,” said Lund, R-Shelby Township. “At a time when the governor is cutting funding for police protection, cutting funding for education, cutting funding for road repair and talking about raising taxes, it’s outrageous that we are paying Hollywood millions of dollars of taxpayer money to make movies in our state.”
Lund is working to repeal legislation signed into law last year that gives television and movie companies up to a 42 percent subsidy for money spent in Michigan. He is also working on legislation to prevent the state from giving loans to film companies.
“The tax credits might be good for Hollywood movie studios, but every other job provider in the state is paying higher taxes to subsidize the movie industry,” Lund said.
Lund noted that despite promises of thousands of new jobs and increased tax revenue, actual job growth has been modest. Out of the $125 million spent by the film industry in Michigan in 2008, only $25.1 million was spent on wages for Michigan workers. At the same time, the state treasury paid out nearly $48 million in refundable tax credits. The Senate Fiscal Agency estimates the state will pay out another $50 million in 2009 and more than $100 million in 2010.
Lund said he believes the public supports the program because they do not realize that the state is actually paying movie studios up to 42 cents for every dollar spent in Michigan.
“I’ve found people like the idea of the Hollywood policy, until they learn that it’s not a tax cut, but that we are actually paying the movie studios’ bills. Then people get angry,” Lund said.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I work as an extra on some of the movies that are shot in the area . We truly can only see the positive change it is having in Michigan. So just elimate all the movies that are shot here and see if you can fix the problem with NO cash coming in .(explictive)
Hey Grant, what have you worked on here? Tell us a little more about your experiences and what your thoughts are. Do you have to be a SAG member to be a non-talking extra? How much do they typically pay ( if anything)? And where can people go to register here in Michigan to be an extra.
Thanks Grant
I was an unemployed video producer laid off from Ford’s FCN last year and am now teaching film and video classes at a local communtiy college. The college is spending 1.5 million dollars on a new studio and hiring several other faculity and support staff. This is all beccause they see the film industry as a future high job growth market int he State. I’m pretty sure that Cassis and the GOP that are bent on destroying the credits are not counting my income tax or job as a direct result of the tax incientives, but if these incentives die so will my new job. Oh well, I guess I an always go back on unemployment……