88R1964 JCG-D
 
  By: Cole H.B. No. 1471
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to eligibility requirements of the moving image industry
  incentive program for certain moving image projects involving a
  firearm.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 485.021, Government Code, is amended by
  amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivision (1-a) to read as
  follows:
               (1)  "Firearm" has the meaning assigned by Section
  62.014, Parks and Wildlife Code.
               (1-a)  "In-state spending" means the amount of money
  spent in Texas by a production company during the production and
  completion of a moving image project, including the amount spent on
  wages to Texas residents. The term does not include wages described
  by Section 485.024(b).
         SECTION 2.  Section 485.022(b), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (b)  The office shall develop a procedure for the submission
  of grant applications and the awarding of grants under this
  subchapter. The procedure must include provisions relating to:
               (1)  methods by which an individual's Texas residency
  as described by Section 485.021(4) can be proved; and
               (2)  requirements for the submission, before
  production of a moving image project begins, of:
                     (A)  an estimate of total in-state spending;
                     (B)  the shooting script or story board, as
  applicable;
                     (C)  the estimated number of jobs for cast and
  production crew during the production and completion of the [a]
  moving image project; [and]
                     (D)  a certified statement on whether:
                           (i)  a member of the cast or production crew
  will handle or discharge a firearm during the production or
  completion of the moving image project; and
                           (ii)  the member described by Subparagraph
  (i) has completed the hunter education program described by Section
  62.014, Parks and Wildlife Code, or an equivalent firearm education
  program as determined by the office; and
                     (E)  any other information considered useful and
  necessary by the office for an adequate and accurate analysis of a
  production company's in-state spending.
         SECTION 3.  Section 485.023, Government Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 485.023.  QUALIFICATION. To qualify for a grant under
  this subchapter:
               (1)  a production company must have spent a minimum of:
                     (A)  $250,000 in in-state spending for a film or
  television program; or
                     (B)  $100,000 in in-state spending for a
  commercial or series of commercials, an educational or
  instructional video or series of educational or instructional
  videos, or a digital interactive media production;
               (2)  at least 70 percent of the production crew,
  actors, and extras for a moving image project must be Texas
  residents unless the office determines and certifies in writing
  that a sufficient number of qualified crew, actors, and extras are
  not available to the company at the time principal photography
  begins;
               (3)  at least 60 percent of the moving image project
  must be filmed in Texas; [and]
               (4)  before handling or discharging a firearm during
  the production or completion of the moving image project, each
  person who handles or discharges the firearm must complete the
  hunter education program described by Section 62.014, Parks and
  Wildlife Code, or an equivalent firearm education program as
  determined by the office; and
               (5)  a production company must submit to the office an
  expended budget, in a format prescribed by the office, that
  reflects all in-state spending and includes all receipts, invoices,
  pay orders, and other documentation considered necessary by the
  office to accurately determine the amount of a production company's
  in-state spending that has occurred.
         SECTION 4.  The changes in law made by this Act to Chapter
  485, Government Code, apply only to a grant awarded on or after the
  effective date of this Act. A grant awarded before the effective
  date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
  award was made, and the former law is continued in effect for that
  purpose.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.