Take Two
Tax incentives for film producers might not be such a good idea after all. The Post-Dispatch reports that two directors complained about St. Louis after filming their movie:
They said the state of Missouri had offered the best tax incentives for the story, which was set in a nameless Midwestern city, but that the weather was too hot, rental-property owners were greedy and the local crew was inexperienced.
Even after that bad experience, the Joplin Globe now urges lawmakers to keep expanding tax breaks:
Movies are a multibillion-dollar business. Missouri and Kansas think they can get a chunk of the action. It is worth a try. Let the cameras roll!
It’s true there’s a lot of money in movie-making, but it’s not fair to give tax incentives to huge industries while small businesses struggle under full tax burdens. Lowering taxes for everybody would be more equitable. And if you don’t play favorites, you don’t have to worry about bad press after people who don’t really want to be in Missouri come just for the tax "opportunities."
