Montana has benefited greatly from the Media Act that was passed in 2019 and has since attracted incredible motion picture and television productions to our state.
This Law has one major pitfall. There is a limit to the number of productions that we can attract. This is called "The Cap".
The Media Act has been beneficial for some Montanans, but not for all. It can do so much more.
It's time to... LIFT THE CAP.
Creates Jobs For Montana
Supports Education
Increases Revenue for all of Montana
Lift the Cap Campaign
What is the Film Cap?
Montana House Bill No.340 was passed into law in 2019 and became the MEDIA Act. The "cap" inhibits the state by limiting the overall financial tax credit available for all productions. The cap was never in the original bill, it was added last minute, much to the surprise and dismay of the original authors. This law already has restrictions in place that qualifying productions cannot deduct more than 35% of the company's base investment. Therefore the cap is presumed to be in place only to ensure government control and thus inhibits economic development.
Why Montana needs to
eliminate the cap
The current film cap is limited to $12 million in available credit for all of the media productions in the state of Montana. Larger businesses
and Productions therefore look elsewhere to states like Georgia, that has created over 90,000 jobs. World Wide Entertainment Studios, for example, have committed to building a full-size studio in Montana. But the current cap limits the client base needed to support the studio and all of the jobs that could be created.
The current cap is simply too low for larger businesses and media productions to come to Montana.
What has the MEDIA Act cultivated in Montana?
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$730.1 million in spending to the state’s economy.
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$44.5 million in state tax revenues directed in whole or in part to the general fund.
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10,200-plus jobs across a wide spectrum of industries, including both tourism-related and other industries.
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$376 million in income received by Montana households.
These numbers are from a single production company confined to only a few Montana counties. Envision what is possible if we eliminate the cap and let the MEDIA Act reach the full potential of its original design.