The head of the Pittsburgh Film Office says while it was great that the state budget contained an extension of the $100 million PA film tax credit, they're losing business to other states who don't cap it at that amount.
Dawn Keezer says it should be at least $300 million in order to stay competitive with neighboring states.
She says the tax credit spurs economic activity by production companies.
“They first have to spend a minimum of 60 percent of their entire budget in the commonwealth on qualified expenses, which means, everything they rent or purchase has to come from a Pennsylvania business,” said Keezer.
She says the region also lost out on three features in recent months because the state budget impasse meant no tax credits were available.
Keezer says $100 million is used up quickly when two production hubs, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, are both using that money.
She adds currently, Pittsburgh gets more productions compared to Philadelphia, about a 60/40 split.
Keezer says the first question she’s asked when a company considers shooting in PA is how much of the $100 million is left?