Since 2019, the Montana MEDIA Act has provided $12 million per year in tax cuts for film and television production in the state.
State lawmakers heard a proposal to increase the cuts offered, from $12 million to $250 million per year.
Representative Kerri Seekins-Crowe, a Republican from Billings sponsored the measure. She said the expansion was needed to spur long-term investment in the state by the film industry:
“We have a chance to establish a new, lasting industry in Montana that not only creates jobs directly in film production, but also supports a multitude of related sectors.”
A number of Montana production companies spoke in favor of the bill. They pointed to an analysis from the Montana Film Office that found filmmaking contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to the state economy since the act was passed.
However, lawmakers on the House Taxation Committee balked at the price tag of the expansion. Legislative fiscal analysts forecast the increased cap would cost the state general fund hundreds of millions of dollars in lost taxes.
Representative Mark Thane, a Missoula Democrat, summarized the committee’s hesitancy.
“We’ve got a proposal here that’s in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and I just think that’s beyond what we can sustain.”
The Committee voted unanimously to table the bill. The MEDIA Act is set to expire after 2029 if it’s not renewed.
