Bill > SB2796

This bill, effective January 1, 2050, amends Hawaii's tax laws to apply the manufacturing general excise tax rate, which is 0.5%, to motion picture, digital media, and film productions, and removes a previous condition that required "qualified production costs" to be subject to the highest general excise tax rate. It also exempts from the general excise tax any amounts a motion picture project employer receives from a client company that are directly disbursed for employee wages, salaries, payroll taxes, insurance premiums, and employment benefits, as well as payments made to "loan-out companies" (companies that provide services of individuals, often actors or crew members, to a production). This change aims to provide tax relief and incentives for the film and digital media industries in Hawaii.