HB243 Alabama 2012 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Alan Harper

Republican

Co-Sponsors

Donnie ChesteenKurt WallaceWes LongEd HenryPaul W. LeeTerri CollinsK.L. BrownJoe HubbardJim Patterson

Session

Regular Session 2012

Title

Economic Development, entertain industry incentives, qualified production project, qualified expenditure available for rebate or exemption increased, Sec. 41-7A-43, 41-7A-45, 41-7A-48, am'd; Act 2011-695, 2011 Reg. Sess., am'd (2012-20079)

Summary

HB243 expands and raises Alabama's entertainment incentives by increasing rebate and tax-exemption limits and clarifying eligible costs for productions.

What This Bill Does

It raises the maximum eligible production expenditures for rebates to up to $20 million per state-certified production and sets a minimum spend of $500,000. The rebate formula continues to give 25% of expenditures excluding Alabama resident payroll plus 35% of Alabama resident payroll. It allows aggregation of TV episodes or commercials within a 12-month period to meet the expenditure thresholds, as long as each piece relates to the same subject. It also provides a state sales/use/lodging tax exemption for qualified productions with $150,000+ in a 12-month period, up to a cap, and increases the overall annual incentive cap over time, eventually reaching $20 million per year.

Who It Affects

• Qualified production companies (film, TV, soundtrack, or music video projects) grow their potential rebates and exemptions if they meet the new thresholds and caps.
• Alabama residents whose payroll is involved in productions count toward the rebate and payroll calculations, potentially increasing the rebate amount for projects that hire local workers.

Key Provisions

• §41-7A-43: Rebates for state-certified productions are 25% of production expenditures excluding Alabama resident payroll plus 35% of Alabama resident payroll; require at least $500,000 in total expenditures; rebates capped after the first $20,000,000 of expenditures in Alabama on a state-certified production.
• TV series/miniseries aggregation: A single TV series episode or miniseries can be treated as part of a single production, and the total expenditures may be aggregated across episodes within 12 months if each episode qualifies and covers the same subject.
• Commercial aggregation: A series of commercials can be treated similarly to meet expenditure thresholds if each commercial qualifies and is planned as part of a series within 12 months.
• Soundtrack projects: Rebates apply to soundtracks with at least $50,000 in expenditures, but rebates do not apply after $300,000 of soundtrack expenditures (still within the overall cap).
• Music video projects: Rebates apply to music videos with at least $50,000 in expenditures, but rebates do not apply after $200,000 of music video expenditures.
• §41-7A-45: For qualified productions spending $150,000+ in Alabama in 12 months, the state portion of sales/use and lodging taxes is exempted (local taxes still apply); the exemption ends after $20,000,000 of expenditures in Alabama on a state-certified project.
• §41-7A-48: The annual cap on incentives starts at $5,000,000 (FY ending 9/30/2009), then $7,500,000 (FY ending 9/30/2010), $10,000,000 (FY ending 9/30/2011 and 2012), $15,000,000 (FY ending 9/30/2013 and 9/30/2014), and $20,000,000 for all years after that.

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