HB345 Alabama 2011 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Richard Lindsey

Democrat

Session

Regular Session 2011

Title

Entertainment Industry Incentive Act of 2009, qualified production companies, tax rebates further provided for, tax exemptions limited to state portion of sales, use, and lodging tax, Secs. 41-7A-43, 41-7A-45 am'd.

Summary

HB345 updates Alabama's entertainment incentives by clarifying eligible expenditures, expanding and timing rebates, setting minimum spend requirements, capping rebates, and assigning rulemaking to the Alabama Film Office with the Department of Revenue.

What This Bill Does

It clarifies how expenditures for TV series, miniseries, or single commercials are counted toward the rebate. It extends rebates to certain additional qualified productions and allows rebates to be claimed in the tax year when production activity concludes. It imposes a $150,000 minimum aggregate spend in a 12-month period to qualify for the tax exemptions, requires the production to pay the local portion of sales, use, and lodging taxes, and caps rebates so they apply only to the first $10 million of expenditures. It assigns rulemaking responsibilities to the Alabama Film Office and the Department of Revenue, and keeps the tax exemptions limited to the state portion of taxes while allowing soundtrack and music video rebates with their own limits.

Who It Affects

• Qualified production companies in Alabama (film, TV, commercials) by defining eligible productions, calculating rebates, and applying new minimum spend and cap rules.
• Local governments and Alabama taxpayers, because productions must pay the local portion of sales, use, and lodging taxes and rebates do not cover local taxes.

Key Provisions

• Clarifies qualifying expenditures for a television series, a miniseries, and a single commercial under the state incentive.
• Extends rebates to additional qualified productions and allows rebates for the tax year in which production activity concludes.
• Requires a production to spend at least $150,000 in a 12-month period to qualify for the tax exemptions; local taxes must be paid in full.
• Sets rebates as 25 percent of state-certified expenditures excluding Alabama resident payroll plus 35 percent of Alabama resident payroll; expenditures must be between $500,000 and $10,000,000 for a project to receive rebates.
• Allows aggregation of episodic productions or series of commercials within 12 months if each episode/commercial fits the same project and subject.
• Includes special rebate rules for soundtrack projects (minimum $50,000; rebate ends after $300,000) and music videos (minimum $50,000; rebate ends after $200,000).
• Rebates can offset the Alabama income tax liability for the year the production ends; any excess rebate is refunded to the production company.
• Rebates are capped so no rebate applies to expenditures beyond the first $10,000,000 of state-certified production expenditures.
• Exempts the state portion of certain taxes for qualified productions (aggregate $150,000+ within 12 months), but does not exempt local taxes; the exemption ends after $10,000,000 of expenditures for a project.
• Involves the Alabama Film Office with the Department of Revenue in promulgating rules to administer the rebate program.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Economic Development