Senate unveils a $48b budget plan, one that would tighten state’s film tax credit, increase aid to schools
(bostonglobe.com)
Massachusetts Senate leaders on Tuesday unveiled the contours of a $47.6 billion budget proposal that would boostspending by $1.2 billion over the current year and funnel hundreds of millions of more dollars to local schools, without any broad-based tax increases.
The chamber will debate changes to the bill on May 25, after which Senate and House leaders will have to reconcile differences between their proposals before sending a final product to Governor Charlie Baker for the fiscal year starting July 1.
Here are some notable details in the Senate’s package:
Film credit targeted
The proposal avoids any hikes to the broad-based taxes the state’s budget is built upon — including the income tax and salestax. But it would tweak the edges of the state’s tax code, most notably with a series of proposed changes meant to tighten the controversial film tax credit program, putting the chamber at odds with the House, which voted last month to permanently extend the credit during its own budget debate.
By contrast, the Senate plan would extend the credit only to 2027, four years after it’s slated to expire. It also would cap those salaries eligible to be covered by the credit at $1 million, and, in a major change, end the ability of production companies to transfer the credit — in other words, sell it to other entities, including insurance companies, corporations, or even individuals, said Senator Michael J. Rodrigues, the chamber’s budget chairman.
By: Matt Stout
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