* 24-a. Musical and theatrical production credit. (a)(1) Allowance of credit. A taxpayer which is a qualified musical and theatrical production company, or which is a sole proprietor of or a member of a partnership which is a qualified musical and theatrical production company, and which is subject to tax under article nine-A or twenty-two of this chapter, shall be allowed a credit against such tax, pursuant to the provisions referred to in subdivision (c) of this section, and to be computed as provided in this section.
(2) The amount of the credit shall be the product (or pro rata share of the product, in the case of a member of a partnership) of twenty-five percent and the sum of the qualified production expenditures and the transportation expenditures.
(3) No qualified production expenditures or transportation expenditures used by a taxpayer either as the basis for the allowance of the credit provided for pursuant to this section or used in the calculation of the credit provided pursuant to this section shall be used by such taxpayer to claim any other credit allowed pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
(1) "Qualified musical and theatrical production" means a for-profit live, dramatic stage presentation in a qualified production facility, certified pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated by the department of economic development, as a qualified touring production.
(2) "Qualified touring production" means a live, dramatic stage production that, in its original or adaptive version, is performed in a qualified production facility, and has begun or will begin a tour, consisting of eight or more shows in three or more localities.
(3) "Qualified production expenditure" means any costs for tangible property used and services performed directly and predominantly in the production of a qualified musical and theatrical production within the state including: (i) expenditures for design, construction and operation, including sets, special and visual effects, costumes, wardrobes, make-up, accessories and costs associated with sound, lighting, and staging, (ii) all salaries, wages, fees, and other compensation including related benefits for services performed of which the total allowable expense shall not exceed two hundred thousand dollars per week, and (iii) technical and crew production costs, such as expenditures for qualified production facilities, or any part thereof, props, make-up, wardrobe, costumes, equipment used for special and visual effects, sound recording, set construction, and lighting.
(4) "Qualified production facility" means a facility located in the state but outside the city of New York (i) in which live theatrical productions are or are intended to be primarily presented, (ii) that contains at least one stage, a seating capacity of one thousand or more seats, and dressing rooms, storage areas, and other ancillary amenities necessary for the qualified musical and theatrical production, (iii) for which receipts attributable to ticket sales constitute seventy-five percent or more of gross receipts of the facility, and (iv) which is not a licensee, or affiliated with a licensee, of the New York state gaming commission under the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law.
(5) "Qualified musical and theatrical production company" is a corporation, partnership, limited partnership, or other entity or individual which or who is principally engaged in the production of a qualified musical or theatrical production and performs in a qualified production facility.
(6) (i) "Transportation expenditures" means transportation expenditures incurred and paid directly and predominantly in the production of a qualified musical and theatrical production. Such expenditures shall include the packaging, crating, and transportation within the state for use in a qualified theater production of sets, costumes, or other tangible property constructed or manufactured in and out of state, and the transportation of the cast and crew within the state. Such term shall include the packaging, crating, and transporting within the state of property and equipment used for special and visual effects, sound, lighting and staging, costumes, wardrobes, make-up and related accessories and materials, as well as any other performance or production-related property and equipment.
(ii) Transportation expenditures shall not include any costs to transport property and equipment to be used only for filming and not in a qualified theater production, any indirect costs, and expenditures that are later reimbursed by a third party, or any amounts that are paid to persons or entities as a result of their participation in profits from the exploitation of the production.
(c) Cross-references. For application of the credit provided for in this section, see the following provisions of this chapter:
(1) article 9-A: section 210-B: subdivision 47.
(2) article 22: section 606: subsection (u).
(d) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, (i) employees and officers of the department of economic development and the department shall be allowed and are directed to share and exchange information regarding the credits applied for, allowed, or claimed pursuant to this section and taxpayers who are applying for credits or who are claiming credits, including information contained in or derived from credit claim forms submitted to the department and applications for certification submitted to the department of economic development, and (ii) the commissioner and the commissioner of the department of economic development may release the names and addresses of any taxpayer claiming this credit and the amount of the credit earned by the taxpayer. Provided, however, if a taxpayer claims this credit because it is a member of a limited liability company or a partner in a partnership, only the amount of credit earned by the entity and not the amount of credit claimed by the taxpayer may be released.
(e) Maximum amount of credits. (1) The aggregate amount of tax credits allowed under this section, subdivision forty-seven of section two hundred ten-B and subsection (u) of section six hundred six of this chapter in any calendar year shall be four million dollars. Such aggregate amount of credits shall be allocated by the department of economic development among taxpayers in order of priority based upon the date of filing an application for allocation of musical and theatrical production credit with such department. If the total amount of allocated credits applied for in any particular year exceeds the aggregate amount of tax credits allowed for such year under this section, such excess shall be treated as having been applied for on the first day of the subsequent year.
(2) The commissioner of economic development, after consulting with the commissioner, shall promulgate regulations by October thirty-first, two thousand fourteen to establish procedures for the allocation of tax credits as required by subdivision (a) of this section. Such rules and regulations shall include provisions describing the application process, the due dates for such applications, the standards which shall be used to evaluate the applications, the documentation that will be provided to taxpayers to substantiate to the department the amount of tax credits allocated to such taxpayers, and such other provisions as deemed necessary and appropriate. Notwithstanding any other provisions to the contrary in the state administrative procedure act, such rules and regulations may be adopted on an emergency basis if necessary to meet such October thirty-first, two thousand fourteen deadline.
(f) The department of economic development shall submit to the governor, the temporary president of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly, an annual report to be submitted on February first of each year evaluating the effectiveness of the musical and theatrical production tax credit provided by this section in stimulating the growth of the musical and theatrical industry in the state. Such report shall include, but need not be limited to, in total and by qualified musical and theatrical production, the number of qualified musical and theatrical productions which received a musical and theatrical production credit, the qualified production expenditures, the transportation expenditures, the qualified production facilities, and the credit amounts claimed by each qualified musical and theatrical production, as well as the impact on employment and the economy of the state. Such report shall include (1) the credit-eligible man hours for each project and the total wages for such credit-eligible man hours for each project as well as the name of each taxpayer allocated a tax credit for each project and the county of residence or incorporation of such taxpayer or, if the taxpayer does not reside or is not incorporated in New York, then the state of residence or incorporation; provided however, if the taxpayer claims a tax credit because the taxpayer is a member of a limited liability company, a partner in a partnership or a shareholder in a subchapter S corporation, the name of each limited liability company, partnership or subchapter S corporation earning any of those tax credits must be included in the report instead of information about the taxpayer claiming the tax credit; and (2) the amount of tax credit allocated to each taxpayer; provided, however, if the taxpayer claims a tax credit because the taxpayer is a member of a limited liability company, a partner in a partnership or a shareholder in a subchapter S corporation, the amount of tax credit earned by each entity must be included in the report instead of information about the taxpayer claiming the tax credit, and information identifying the project associated with each taxpayer for which a tax credit was claimed under this section, including the name of the musical and theatrical production and county in which the production is performed must be included in such report. Such report shall be based on data available from the application filed with the department of economic development for allocation of musical and theatrical production credits. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the information contained in the report shall be public information. The report may also include any recommendations of changes in the calculation or administration of the credit, and any other recommendation of the commissioner of the department of economic development regarding continuing modification, repeal of such act, and such other information regarding the act as the commissioner of the department of economic development may feel useful and appropriate.
* NB Repealed March 31, 2018
Last modified: February 3, 2019