Movies and TV shows with gay characters could be ineligible for a "family-friendly" tax credit in Florida under a little-noticed provision tucked into a $75 million incentive package that Republican House leaders hope will attract film and entertainment jobs to the state.
The bill would prohibit productions with "nontraditional family values" from receiving a so-called family-friendly tax credit. But it doesn't define what "nontraditional family values" are, something the bill's sponsor, Rep. Stephen Precourt, R-Orlando, had a hard time doing, too.
Precourt, whose district includes Walt Disney World, said he was not targeting the gay community by including the term "nontraditional family values" in his bill. But when asked if shows with gay characters should get the tax credit, he said, "That would not be the kind of thing I'd say that we want to invest public dollars in."
The bill (HB 697) was approved unanimously last week in the first meeting this session of the House Economic Development Policy Committee. If it passes the House Finance and Tax Council, the bill would consume almost all of the $88 million that House Speaker Larry Cretul gave the council to spend on tax cuts this year.
Read more in the Palm Beach Post.
