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One of President Donald Trump’s most persistent political foes has found common ground with him in their shared push to save Hollywood.
Trump wants to incentivize film and television production in Hollywood after years of job loss and other states and countries offering incentives to attract television and film projects to leave what has long been the heart of entertainment in the U.S. for more than a century.
And Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who once led the first impeachment against Trump and has maintained a strong opposition to him since he retook office, is on board with the idea.
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“I am in strong agreement with the President,” Schiff said on X. “Congress should immediately take up and pass a federal film tax incentive to bring back these good-paying jobs that we’ve lost to other countries.”
“Let’s work together — Republicans and Democrats — to get this done, and bring the movie magic back to America,” he continued.
Hollywood’s stature as an entertainment colossus has taken a hit over the last few years following the COVID-19 pandemic and the burst of the streaming bubble.
The industry has lost 49,000 jobs since 2022, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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Trump said on Truth Social after meeting with the actor Jon Voight, who serves as the U.S. special ambassador to Hollywood, that he was interested in launching federal tax incentives to stop the bleeding from Tinseltown.
Trump is urging Republican and Democratic leaders in Congress to tackle the issue immediately to “craft Legislation to save the Movie, Television, and Entertainment Business in America.”
“Congress should approve, immediately, a Federal Production Incentive to create Entertainment Jobs in America. It can be done quickly, accurately, efficiently and, importantly, will benefit ALL of America,” Trump said.
That comes with its own headaches, given Congress’ truncated schedule during September, the entire month of October being dedicated to campaigning for midterm elections and November officially launching the lame duck session of Congress in Washington, D.C.
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Trump noted that film and television production has moved elsewhere in the country and abroad, leaving Hollywood a “complete and total disaster.”
California is lagging behind other states and countries in its tax breaks for the industry. Recognizing the substantial post-pandemic drop in jobs, the state Legislature moved to more than double California’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program to $750 million, with sweeteners baked in to get productions to relocate back to California.
That program was undermined by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, however, when he installed a $5 million state corporate tax credit cap over the next three years.
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Even with the strides taken to attract productions back to Hollywood, California is still behind Georgia and New York, which allocate more than $1 billion and roughly $800 million, respectively, in tax breaks for productions. Canada and the United Kingdom also offer generous tax breaks, attracting production away from the U.S. entirely.
“There is no incentive to be there, and it is hurting California very badly,” Trump said. “Jon, and many others in the Industry, are suggesting we do Federal Tax Incentives in order to Make our Movie and Television Production Business GREAT AGAIN, perhaps GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE!”
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