Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Arts Culture Festivals topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate committee advances bill to create music festival preservation grant program
Summary
The Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee approved SB 370 to establish a Go-Biz grant program to support multi-day independent music festivals that generate significant local economic activity, sending the bill to the Senate Appropriations Committee.
The Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee on Monday advanced SB 370, the Music Festival Preservation Act, a measure to create a state grant program for multi‑day independent live music festivals that materially boost local economies.
The bill, presented by Senator Ashby, would direct the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (Go‑Biz) to establish a competitive grant program intended to shore up production costs for festivals that bring substantial visitor spending to host communities. Ashby said festivals “attract thousands of visitors each year, generate millions in economic activity, create jobs, and contribute significant tax revenues.”
Why it matters: Witnesses and lawmakers said festivals produce outsized returns for local economies but operate on thin margins and face unpredictable risks such as weather and wildfire. Mike Testa, president and CEO of Visit Sacramento, told the committee that Sacramento’s festivals have driven tens of millions of dollars in local impact and that recent cancellations cost the region millions in lost economic activity. Dylan Welsh, senior director of legal affairs for Danny Wimmer Presents, described production costs that must be committed well before an event and said his company’s 2024 production cost for one festival was about $38.7 million, of which roughly $22.6 million was spent in California on staffing, local businesses and public services.
Supporters said the state investment would protect tourism and local tax revenue. Opponents were not recorded during the hearing. Lawmakers questioned how the program would be administered and who would be eligible; Ashby said Go‑Biz would develop implementing regulations and the bill would be aimed at multi‑day events that use public land and demonstrate a track record of generating significant revenue for a region.
The committee approved the measure and ordered it to the Senate Appropriations Committee. The roll call recorded the motion as passing and committee staff later indicated the bill is headed to appropriations for fiscal review and implementation details.
Proponents emphasized the bill as an economic development tool, not a subsidy for isolated cultural events, and said eligibility and reporting details would be laid out as the bill moves through the process.
Votes at the hearing: Committee vote recorded as passing and the bill was sent to Senate Appropriations Committee.
