LTC 077-2010 Recent Media Regarding Florida Film Incentive Billsm MIAMI BEACH ~~;;:,~:!"~,{,=:~:
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER 2010 BAR 16 Pit 12~ 58
NO. LTC # o»-2oio LETTER_TO. CQwIL~II~~ION
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TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Members of the City Commission
FROM: Jorge M. Gonzalez, City Manager
DATE: March 12, 2010
SUBJECT: Recent media regarding Florida Film Incentive bills
Earlier this week, the Palm Beach Post published an article that characterized the current
Florida Film Incentive bill, HB 697, and its companion, SB 1430, as discriminatory. The story
was picked up by the Associated Press and it, or editorial versions of it, have since been
carried in numerous publications, including the Miami Herald and New York Times, as well
as many blogs. The stories are misinterpreting the nature of the bill, which is a jobs creation
and economic development act, by focusing on a small portion of the bill, the "family friendl~l'
bonus.
The primary purpose of the bill is to convert the existing Florida Film Incentive from an
appropriated rebate to a transferable tax credit, and, in the process, allocate sufficient and
consistent funding to allow it to succeed in attracting film, television, commercial and digital
media productions to Florida. Put simply, producers wishing to film in Florida will be able to
apply for tax credits of up to 25% of the Florida spending in what is a completely content
neutral process designed to stimulate jobs and spending in Florida. Given that the state has
had to turn away hundreds of millions of dollars in investment because of an underfunded
and inconsistent incentive the past few years, dropping Florida from the third most popular
shooting destination in the United States to well below the top ten, we have every reason to
believe this new version of the incentive will be very successful in luring production to Florida
and, specifically, Miami Beach. The current incentive is responsible for USA's Burn Notice
and A&E new series Florida Sfraits filming locally.
The "family friendly" bonus has been in the existing incentive since 2007 and serves to
attract the types of productions that are meant to be viewed by a general audience. For
conflict of interest purposes, the language could not be tied directly to ratings boards like the
Motion Picture Association of America and instead specified limitations on this additional
voluntary bonus beyond the primary incentive. Such limitations included portrayals of
drinking, smoking, foul language and nudity. To date, eight projects have applied for this
additional voluntary bonus and only two have been disqualified due to their portrayal of
drinking. The current bill enhanced the bonus from 2 to 5% and added some additional
language to the "family friendly" voluntary portion of the bill, including limited uses of
"gratuitous violence" and "non-traditional family values." This last portion is what has lead to
a misinterpretation of the nature of the entire incentive as opposed to a voluntary portion.
The production community has worked with the sponsor of this bill, Representative Steve
Precourt over the past months. Representative Precourt has insisted publicly the bonus, like
the main incentive, is not in any way intended to be discriminatory towards race, religion,
age, sexual preference, etc. Unfortunately, however, it is being perceived that way and the
production community is currently working with the legislator to nuance the language in the
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Film Incentive
bill before the next committee stop to ensure it is not seen as discriminatory but instead
designed to attract projects that are intended for a general audience.
The City of Miami Beach has taken an active role in support of this incentive and industry.
The City's Film and Event Production Manager serves as President of Film Florida, the
statewide marketing and legislative support association forthe entertainment industry, which
has historically lead the charge on building this incentive and aiding its passage. As well,
the city passed a resolution in support of these bills, as have many municipalities and
industry and tourism associations, as they are intended to promote jobs and economic
development through the creative industries of film, television, commercial and digital media
production.
Staff will maintain an involvement through this process and keep you apprised of expected
language changes to the incentive.
JMG/HMF/MAS/gw
C: Hilda M. Fernandez, Assistant City Manager
Max Sklar, Tourism and Cultural Development Director
Graham Winick, Film and Event Production Manager