Hollywood Funded By Taxpayer Grants/Subsidies..Very Unequal For US!
Hollywood hypocrisy again. Why didn't Patricia Arquette speak up about the fact that $1,500,000,000 ($1.5 billion) is GIVEN to Hollywood each year by 42+- states each year by TAXPAYERS in the form of REFUNDABLE TAX CREDITS to the film industry to fund Hollywood movies. These are NOT tax breaks which reduce tax liabilities. Rather, the states literally take money away from state education, road repair, homeless veterans, state workers pension funds (ie, from the State treasury) and hand grant checks/stipend checks to for profit Hollywood production companies as an incentive to film in the states.
That's something these actors generally DON'T talk about when they promote their films or rant and rave about at Oscar ceremonies. Why? It's making them rich at OUR expense... a well kept secret in plain view....
Here's a quick summary
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Kfl4Js1PPxE
And this...law professor explaining how they are fiscally irresponsible and unconstitutional in his opinion....
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http://youtu.be/OUZuFikDj08
Why do you think Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are suddenly producers? Or Katie Holmes? Or every other actor in Hollywood and his brother? And all these really bad independent films are greenlit? Because there's a FREE source of FUNDING... and that's....cough cough...and I'm talking to you EVERY woman in this country who ever gave birth to a taxpayer... yes...the TAXPAYER.... WE... the struggling TAXPAYERS... making minimum wages are putting funds into state coiffers so that rich Hollywood millionaires can play "let's make movies and pay ourselves atrocious salaries" with that money....
Here's some sickening info. North Carolina taxpayers paid the Iron Man film $20,000,000 in taxpayer grants and the producers turned around and paid Robert Downey Jr $50,000,000 in salary. Why not let the $20,000,000 go to the 10,000 homeless veterans in North Carolina and greedy RDJ could take a benevolent pay cut and try to survive on only $30,000,000 for his 1-3 months work....poor fella (sarcasm intended)
New York pays I believe 30% of a TV or films production costs. $430,000,000 a year or something like that. Yet a while ago a court in New York had to shut down because they didn't have bailiffs to protect the judges, parties and PUBLIC due to rejection of something like $9 million for added protection for the Court. And other clerks are forced to work OVER TIME WITHOUT PAY in violation of the federal FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT due to lack of funding. Yet, the movie Wolf of Wall Street received 30% of it's budget paid FREE of CHARGE as a gift from New York taxpayers.
And these economic payment programs are race to the bottom structures. Meaning that they don't offer long term economic growth for the State. The producers travel from state to state picking up free taxpayer money and move film crews around without laying roots. So, states waste money with no real return on investment. The average is like $0.10-$0.20 return on every $1,spent. Louisiana spends around $6 to $7 trying to recoup every $1 given to Hollywood.
The profit is taxed elsewhere so states give your money away and don't get a return on the investment. It's a wasted gift to Hollywood and a structure created by golden calf worshipping star struck legislators who dream of hanging out with movie stars.
When will someone in Hollywood complain about THAT at Oscars??? Don't ANYONE hold their breath. Discuss? I have articles and videos which may interest some of you on this topic... This is an issue which is fought in state legislatures year after year during budget time.... EVER hear folks in Hollywood discuss it???
Galena
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*Free speech opinion w/ pseudonym internet moniker w/o malice for debate and discussion🌈