DORAVILLE, Ga. — Georgia’s popular film tax credit got some scrutiny at the capitol Thursday – with one lawmaker telling us it’s time to rein it in.
It came on the heels of an audit showing taxpayers lose far more than the state makes in film industry jobs.
Boosters point to a huge new studio in Doraville as a reason Georgia taxpayers should keep supporting the film industry.
"We want to know – where is the money? Is it worth this investment?" state Rep. Jason Ridley (R-Chatsworth) said Thursday. Ridley says there’s very little film work done in his north Georgia hometown.
Other lawmakers have supported the Georgia film industry – and its uncapped state tax credit for productions made at some of Georgia’s gleaming new studios. But a new audit showed that for every taxpayer dollar spent on the film industry this year, the state will only get 19 cents back from the investment.
"Is it making money or losing money?" Ridley asked state auditor Matt Taylor.
"It returns less to the state in tax dollars than it costs the state," Taylor answered during a hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee Thursday.
State Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) was among those defending the tax incentives – pointing to the new studio in Doraville as evidence.
"We couldn’t get anyone to take over that place," Stephens told committee members, "until recently, when we’ve gotten the film industry moved in and invested what’s going to be a 4000 job production studio."
In 2022, state senators added a film tax credit cap to a bill—then changed their minds. Ridley says it may be time to change back.
"Up where I’m at, we’re just kind of a hardworking mill town," Ridley told 11Alive. "If you start looking at those tax credits, I could probably think of a whole lot better places to help some blue-collar people that would use those, and the state would probably benefit more from them."
However, the film tax credit remains politically popular among both political parties. Capping the film tax credit has never gotten real traction at the capitol – and would remain a longshot in this election year.