Jon Voight and producers Steven Paul and Scott Karol, who met with Donald Trump earlier this year on reviving film and television production in the U.S., are calling on Congress to pass the CREATE Act, a bipartisan bill that would renew and strengthen the lone federal production tax credit in the country.
The Creative Relief and Expensing for Artistic Entertainment (CREATE) Act is a bipartisan bill introduced earlier this month by Democratic Rep. Judy Chu (CA) and Sen. Raphael Warnock (GA) and Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY) and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (TN). The bill renews Section 181, a part of the tax code first enacted in 2004 and allows productions to count the first $15 million in production costs towards tax deductions.
The CREATE Act would renew Section 181 through 2030 and raise the cap to as much as $40 million, depending on film location. The bill would also call for annual adjustments to the cap to account for location.
While renewal of Section 181 has been a common request of entertainment industry lobbyists both on the union and studio side over the past 20 years, this would mark the first major expansion of the tax incentive, even if it falls short of the full-fledged tax credit programs run by dozens of film commissions on the state level and the federal-level programs operated by countries like the U.K., Canada, Australia and Greece that offer hundreds of millions in tax credits every year.
“Runaway production has drained too many jobs and too much talent from our country,” said Karol. “Jon, Steven, and I have been working closely with our coalition of industry leaders and lawmakers to help draft this legislation and push for stronger domestic film incentives. Passing section 181 means more high-paying jobs, more work for small businesses that support our industry, and a stronger future for the thousands of families whose livelihoods depend on American film and television.”
Voight, Karol and Paul recently wrapped shooting on “The Last Firefighter,” a drama starring Voight and Kelsey Grammer that was shot entirely in Los Angeles, including on Van Nuys soundstages and with on-location shooting in neighborhoods like Manhattan Beach.
“Filming locally kept crew members employed, helped fill restaurants, and allowed us to capture the unique character and authenticity of LA on screen,” said Paul. “This is what Section 181 can make possible for countless other projects. Those crews and cast feed a lot of families, and all of the money goes back into the communities.”
“We’ve just wrapped a film that celebrates deeply American values such as courage, resilience, and community,” added Voight. “If we pass Section 181, we can help to keep telling these stories here in the U.S., giving our audiences, our workers, and our industry a brighter future.”
After his meeting with Voight in May, Trump proposed a “100 percent tariff” on movies filmed overseas on his Truth Social page. The White House walked back that proposal a day later, and there have been no further developments on that front.
Some California Democrats, most notably Sen. Adam Schiff and Rep. Laura Friedman, have publicly expressed interest in establishing a federal tax credit program that could be layered on top of existing state tax credits, though no legislation has been introduced yet.
