F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
HB 251 2023
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to an entertainment industry tax
3 credit program; creating s. 288.1259, F.S.; providing
4 definitions; creating the Florida First Production
5 Partnership Program within the Department of Economic
6 Opportunity; providing the purpose of the program;
7 providing a tax credit award for certain entertainment
8 industry projects; providing eligibility requirements
9 for such tax credit awards; authorizing tax credit
10 awards up to a certain amount; requiring a certified
11 project to make certain good faith efforts; requiring
12 the Office of Film and Entertainment to accept program
13 applications during certain application periods;
14 authorizing the department to earmark and set aside
15 available tax credit awards in a certain manner;
16 providing that an applicant may be offered a partial
17 tax credit award in certain circumstances; providing
18 an application process for the program; requiring the
19 Florida Film and Entertainment Advisory Council to
20 score qualified projects using certain criteria;
21 requiring the Commissioner of Film and Entertainment
22 to take certain actions relating to the certification
23 or rejection of qualified projects in a timely manner;
24 requiring the department to certify certain
25 information to the Department of Revenue; providing
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26 requirements for a process to verify actual qualified
27 expenditures and bonus eligibility; requiring an
28 independent certified public accountant to conduct a
29 compliance audit and submit a certain report to the
30 commissioner; requiring the commissioner to review the
31 report and provide certain information to the
32 department; requiring a tax credit award to be issued
33 within a reasonable period of time after approval by
34 the department; requiring a certified project to
35 include a certain marketing component; requiring
36 certified projects to allow certain persons to visit
37 the production site upon request of the commissioner;
38 requiring the department to disqualify a project under
39 certain circumstances; providing for liability of, and
40 imposing civil penalties on, an applicant that submits
41 fraudulent information; providing for the election and
42 distribution of tax credits; authorizing the
43 carryforward of tax credits for up to 5 taxable years;
44 allowing the tax credits on a consolidated return
45 basis up to a certain amount; authorizing the
46 distribution of tax credits to company partners or
47 members in certain circumstances; providing that tax
48 credits may succeed to a surviving or acquired entity;
49 authorizing the transfer of tax credits in certain
50 circumstances; authorizing a certified project to
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51 relinquish tax credits to the Department of Revenue in
52 exchange for certain payments; providing that the
53 aggregate amount of tax credits allocated to the
54 program shall equal a certain amount for certain
55 fiscal years; authorizing the Department of Revenue to
56 conduct certain examinations and audits, pursue the
57 recovery of certain funds, and take certain actions;
58 providing for forfeiture of tax credits in certain
59 circumstances; providing that tax credits are not
60 subject to reversion; authorizing the Department of
61 Economic Opportunity and the Department of Revenue to
62 adopt rules; requiring an annual report to the
63 Governor and Legislature; providing for expiration of
64 the program on a specified date; providing for
65 reversion of remaining unawarded tax credits to the
66 General Revenue Fund by a specified date; amending s.
67 220.02, F.S.; providing the order in which the Florida
68 First Production Partnership Program tax credit shall
69 be applied against certain taxes; amending s. 220.13,
70 F.S.; revising the definition of the term "adjusted
71 federal income" to add the amount taken as a Florida
72 First Production Partnership Program tax credit to a
73 taxpayer's taxable income; providing an effective
74 date.
75
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76 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
77
78 Section 1. Section 288.1259, Florida Statutes, is created
79 to read:
80 288.1259 Florida First Production Partnership Program. —
81 (1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, unless the
82 context otherwise requires, the term:
83 (a) "Certified project" means a qualified project that has
84 been scored by the council, has been determined by the
85 commissioner to meet or exceed the desired economic impact and
86 other criteria of the program, and has tax credits allocated to
87 it based on the project's estimated qualified expenditures.
88 (b) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Film and
89 Entertainment.
90 (c) "Council" means the Florida Film and Entertainment
91 Advisory Council.
92 (d) "Digital media project" means a commercial video game,
93 including an educational video game, which includes at least 30
94 minutes of game play time.
95 (e) "Family-friendly" means having cross-generational
96 appeal; being appropriate in theme, content, and language for a
97 broad family audience that includes children as young as 5 -years
98 old; embodying a responsible resolution of issues; not
99 containing any gratuitous act of drinking, drunkenness, or
100 violence or any act of illicit drug use, sex, nudity, or vulgar
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101 or profane language; and not portraying smoking any substance in
102 a positive light.
103 (f) "Film project" means a theatrical, direct-to-video,
104 television, cable, Internet, streaming service, or animated
105 narrative motion picture at least 75 minutes in length.
106 (g) "Florida resident" means a person who has a valid
107 Florida driver license or Florida identification card issued
108 under s. 322.051 and has signed an affidavit confirming
109 residency.
110 (h) "Local inducement" means a cash or goods and services
111 equivalent offered by a local government, entity, or business to
112 induce a project to work in a specific area in this state which
113 has a value equal to at least 1 percent of the actual tax credit
114 award that the project is eligible to receive.
115 (i) "Office" means the Office of Film and Entertainment
116 within the department.
117 (j) "Principal photography" means:
118 1. For a film project or television project, the filming
119 of major or significant components of the project which involve
120 lead actors.
121 2. For a digital media project, the period of time during
122 which the work of the majority of the crew is dedicated solely
123 to the project.
124 (k) "Production start date" means:
125 1. For a film project or television project, the start
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126 date of principal photography, as listed in the project's
127 application to the program.
128 2. For a digital media project, the start date of final
129 storyboards or a later date as specified in the project's
130 application to the program.
131 (l) "Program" means the Florida First Production
132 Partnership Program.
133 (m) "Qualified expenditures" means expenditures made in
134 this state and paid to residents of this state or to businesses
135 registered in this state and made solely for preproduction,
136 production, or postproduction of a qualified project, including
137 the following:
138 1. Rented or leased goods or services provided by a vendor
139 or supplier in this state which is registered with the
140 Department of State or the Department of Revenue, has a physical
141 address in this state other than a post office box, and employs
142 one or more Florida residents on a full-time basis. When
143 services provided by the vendor or supplier include personal
144 services or labor, only expenditures for personal services or
145 labor provided by Florida residents qualify.
146 2. Payments to Florida residents in the form of salary or
147 wages up to a maximum of $200,000 per resident, including
148 amounts paid per diem and amounts paid through payroll service
149 companies, and benefits, including pension, health, and welfare
150 benefits, for technical and production crews, directors,
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151 producers, and performers. For purposes of this subparagraph,
152 payments do not include salary or wages paid to execu tives,
153 legal staff, or other corporate staff who are not employed to
154 work solely on the project.
155 3. Rented or leased cars, trucks, and trailers if the
156 cars, trucks, or trailers are registered with the Department of
157 Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
158 4. Purchases of catered meals and on-set craft service
159 supplies from Florida residents or companies in this state.
160 5. Rented hotel rooms or other accommodations in this
161 state for cast or crew.
162
163 The term does not include expenditures for rebilled goods or
164 services provided by an in-state company from out-of-state
165 vendors or suppliers; expenditures made before qualification for
166 the program; expenditures made by Internet transaction;
167 expenditures for airfare; any costs associated with development,
168 marketing, or distribution of a project; or, for the purposes of
169 a digital media project, expenditures made more than 9 months
170 after the project's first qualified expenditure.
171 (n) "Qualified project" means a film project, television
172 project, or digital media project that meets the application
173 requirements and for which a complete application for the
174 program has been submitted to the commissioner and accepted for
175 consideration by the office. The term does not include a weather
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176 or market program, a sporting event or a sporting event
177 broadcast, a gala, an awards show, a production that solicits
178 funds, a home shopping program, a political program, a gambling -
179 related project or production, a concert production, a news or
180 current events show, a sports or sports recap show, a
181 pornographic production, or any project or production deemed by
182 the office to contain content that is obscene as defined in s.
183 847.001.
184 (o) "Television project" means a television pilot program
185 or a television series that meets the following requiremen ts:
186 1. The project is a scripted drama, comedy, animation, or
187 reality show.
188 2. The project has a runtime to fit at least a 30 -minute
189 program slot, but is not longer than required to fit a 60-minute
190 program slot.
191 3. For a series, the project has at least seven episodes
192 or, if the project is a reality program or series, at least 10
193 episodes.
194 (p) "Underutilized area" means any county in this state
195 except Broward County, Hillsborough County, Miami-Dade County,
196 Orange County, Pinellas County, or Seminole County.
197 (2) CREATION AND PURPOSE.—
198 (a) The Florida First Production Partnership Program is
199 created within the department.
200 (b) The purpose of the program is to boost this state's
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201 economic prosperity by:
202 1. Encouraging the growth of project production across
203 this state in areas that offer local inducements.
204 2. Certifying the highest scoring projects, which provide
205 the greatest return on investment and economic benefit to this
206 state.
207 3. Creating high-paying jobs in an industry with an
208 average salary approximately 50 percent higher than the average
209 in this state.
210 4. Enhancing tourism by choosing projects that encourage
211 tourists to visit this state.
212 5. Broadening the program's statewide impact by offering a
213 modest bonus for projects that take place in underutilized
214 areas.
215 6. Encouraging more family-friendly projects in this
216 state.
217 7. Encouraging the hiring of state residents by requiring
218 that at least 60 percent of a project's employe