So as the state tells parents they are too broke to fund schools and they lose money subsidizing movie stars, they are going to subsidize advertisements for corporations and Hollywood??!!
Ron Paul is right!!! All government is a loot job!!!!
And that is from a former lefty from Massachusetts, folks!!!
"State helping pay for TV ads; Issues $2.1m in tax credits; Part of effort to woo film sector"
"by Todd Wallack, Globe Staff | May 27, 2008
In its high-profile bid to compete with Hollywood and New York as a film production hub, the state is doing more than subsidizing TV series and feature movies through tax credits and sales tax exemptions. It is also underwriting the cost of producing TV commercials in Massachusetts. The Department of Revenue said it has issued more than $2.1 million of tax credits for 37 ad-related productions - with eight more applications pending - since the state started offering incentives two years ago.
Though the state would not reveal recipients' names, local ad production companies say they have received or will seek funding for commercials promoting
"We certainly should not be subsidizing large corporations whose advertising dollars and budgets stretch into the millions," said Liam Day, a spokesman for the Pioneer Institute for Public Policy Research in Boston, which generally opposes aid to specific companies or industries.
But supporters say tax credits could help Massachusetts become a prime locale for advertising productions, creating jobs and pumping millions of dollars into the economy. "We're building a whole new industry," said William Earon, managing director of Coastal Capital Advisors LLC, a Boston private equity and consulting firm that serves the film industry....
It's always the same old shit sell!!
The state is LOSING MONEY because of this GIVEAWAY to the RICH!!!!
Company executives acknowledge that some taxpayer money is going to aid commercials that would have been filmed here without the incentives....
Yeah, here, richer, just TAKE the TAXPAYER'S MONEY!!
Hell, we will THROW it at YOU here in TAXACHUSETTS!!!!!
"It's a waste of taxpayers' money," state Representative Steven D'Amico, Democrat of Seekonk, said of the incentives....
Awww, that's alright!
It's not like that $$$ could have gone for something else -- like SCHOOLS for KIDS!!!
Nor is Massachusetts the only state to offer incentives to the film industry. Earon said 14 states provide tax credits for film production, most of which include advertising. Several local ad agencies, including Redtree, were part of an industry group formed in 2005 to lobby for the film tax incentives in Massachusetts, which helped incorporate advertising into the definition of film production.
Oh, Massachusetts isn't the only state, readers!
That convinces me even more of Ron Paul's righteousness.
Production companies benefit in two ways. They are exempt from sales taxes on expenses related to filming in Massachusetts, and they can recover up to one-quarter of production costs in the form of tax credits. Even companies that would owe little or no corporate income taxes in Massachusetts stand to benefit by selling the tax credits to other companies - at least $12 million of credits have already been sold to financial institutions - or back to the state, which pays 90 cents for every $1 in credits....
Talk about GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG!!!!
In theory, the subsidies could also raise the cost of ads commissioned by the state.
Oh, so the TAX BREAK for the RICH GUY makes STATE ADS -- funded by YOU and ME, taxpayers -- COST MORE!!!
Oh, what a LOOT JOB RACKET we got going here!!!
For instance, since 2006 the Massachusetts State Lottery has spent more than $1 million to produce nine advertising spots, with the money split among seven local companies. Some of the firms might qualify for additional money from the Department of Revenue under the incentive program. Lottery spokesman Dan Rosenfeld said the agency will look into the matter.
The incentives were originally enacted in 2006 and significantly expanded last year, lowering the amount of production expenses needed to qualify from $250,000 to $50,000 and lifting the amount of benefits a company can receive per production.
Ron Paul is right again!!!
Still, some film-industry supporters say the incentives are not broad enough to make Massachusetts a major production center.
Translation: OUR MONEY is being THROWN AWAY to RICH CORPORATIONS, folks!!!
'scuse me, I gotta finish my breakfast bowl of shit!
Earon, of Coastal Capital Advisors, said the state should reimburse companies for a portion of their travel costs to fly in actors and crews, because there isn't enough talent in Massachusetts. Currently, production companies are only allowed to count in-state travel costs. Lawmakers also are considering legislation to offer as much as $60 million in tax credits for the construction of film studios here....
But they CAN'T FUND the SCHOOLS -- telling towns they are ASKING for TOO MUCH!!
IN-effin'-CREDIBLE!!!!!!!!
Senator Cynthia Stone Creem... said she supported the original tax incentives, but has reservations about spending taxpayer money to help build private film studios at a time when the state must restrict other spending.
"It's a lot of money in a bad economy," said the Newton Democrat. "It's using public funds for private endeavors."
Need I say Ron Paul and government looting, readers??
