A State House bill could add more flexibility to Missouri’s film tax credit – bringing more of Hollywood to the Show Me State. The credit is currently capped at $8 million a year for film production and $8 million for TV series production. HB 1499 would change that to $16 million a year, regardless of whether it’s for movies or TV shows.
An Afghan refugee who calls herself Zizi, the subject of a documentary, testified in favor of the bill during a House committee hearing Tuesday.
“Because of my work with the military, in my language skills, I was one of the few Afghans who was eligible to come to America,” she said. “We finished filming about a month ago. Soon, I hope the world will hear my story.”
Cole Payne of central Missouri’s Russellville used to work in movie and TV production in Los Angeles and now owns a production company in Missouri.
“Other states, our neighbors — Oklahoma, Kentucky, Arkansas — you know, they’ve all been doing it for years. They’ve got strong incentive programs,” Payne testified. “Texas is about to pass new legislation on theirs to raise their cap.”
No one testified against St. Charles Republican Colin Wellenkamp’s bill. It will likely have to be added to another bill to increase its chances of passing before the end of the legislative session next month.
Missouri’s film tax credits expired in 2013, and the legislature restored them in 2023.
Note: an earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the entire film tax credit was capped at $8 million and that HB 1499 would double it to $16 million. Missourinet regrets the error.
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