Sen. Norris seeks incentives for film industry

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

04-12-2006 2:34 PM — Tennessee’s film and television industry is pushing the state legislature to provide its community with economic incentives that have been afforded to large corporations like Nissan and Saturn.

Legislation has been filed by State Sen. Mark Norris (R-Collierville) that would provide economic incentives to production companies that do film and music work in Tennessee.

The bill, (SB3513/HB3356), has been modified from its initial draft to create a supervisory board that would decide which projects would receive an incentive package and dispense that assistance from a state-created fund.

There has been discussion requiring projects to have a substantial percentage of those working on the project be Tennessee residents in order to eligible for incentives.

Norris, who sponsored similar legislation last year, told NashvillePost.com, “It’s time we treat film and television productions like any other revenue producing industry in Tennessee.”

David Bennett, director of Tennessee's Film, Entertainment, and Music Commission, said “We’re really interested in making Tennessee competitive with other states. The governor has no opinion on this particular piece of legislation, but he has been a long-time supporter of this industry and wants to see it grow.”