Senate Commerce hears bill to establish film tax credits, sales-tax exemptions

Amelia Kovar Donahue, assistant reviser, told the Kansas Senate Commerce Committee that Senate Bill 52 would "create the Kansas Film and Digital Media Production Development Act" and provide tax incentives for projects produced in Kansas.

The bill would be administered by the Secretary of Commerce with assistance from the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission and would "commence 07/01/2025," Donahue said. Under the proposal, eligible production and postproduction expenditures made in Kansas could qualify for an income tax credit and for a sales-tax exemption; sales-tax exemptions for projects would not apply to expenditures made on or after Jan. 1, 2035, the draft language says.

Supporters at the hearing described the incentives as a tool to keep film and digital-media production in Kansas and to retain locally trained workers. Stewart Little of Little Government Relations, testifying for Grow Kansas Film, said the proposal is modeled on incentives in other states: "This is essentially based on ... the fundamental tax credit that exists in 40 other states." Kiki Busch, a Kansas-born actor who moved back to…