Film industry leaders are making another push to get an incentives deal through the Florida legislature. They’re banking on its inclusion in a tax package when lawmakers return to Tallahassee for a special session next week.
Film incentives bills- designed to lure production to Florida- died in the House and Senate when the regular session ended early.
But Rep. Mike Miller (R. Winter Park) who sponsored the House Bill, said there’s still hope.
“What is still alive is the incentives program through the tax package that has been presented in the call by the speaker of the house and the senate president,” said Miller.
But there’s still no dollar amount attached to those incentives. Miller said lawmakers first have to settle major issues like healthcare.
“We will have to get through the major pieces of healthcare, education, transportation, those big important drivers," he said.
"Once we get those covered, it’s what’s left on the table for what I feel is a very important incentive, credit if you will, for an important industry to Florida.”
Miller said the current incentives program- which ran out of money- would be extended by one year. It would no longer be first come, first served. Instead there would be a ranking system to decide which projects got incentives.