{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-154.61-020","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 154.61-020","heading":"Purposes -- Tax incentives for motion pictures and entertainment","body":"productions and continuous film productions.\n(1) The purposes of KRS 141.383 and this subchapter are to encourage:\n(a) The film and entertainment industry to choose  locations in the\nCommonwealth for the filming and production of motion picture or\nentertainment productions;\n(b) The development of a film and entertainment industry in Kentucky;\n(c) Increased employment opportunities for the citizens of the Commonwealth\nwithin the film and entertainment industry; and\n(d) The development of a production and postproduction infrastructure in the\nCommonwealth for film production and touring Broadway show production\nfacilities containing state-of-the-art technologies.\n(2) The council, together with the Department of Revenue, shall administer the tax\ncredit established by KRS 141.383, this section, and KRS 154.61-030.\n(3) To qualify for the tax incentive provided in subsection (5) of this section, the\nfollowing requirements shall be met:\n(a) For an approved company that films or produces a commercial in whole or in\npart in the Commonwealth, the minimum combined total of qualifying\nexpenditures and qualifying payroll expenditures shall be two hundred\nthousand dollars ($200,000); and\n(b) For an approved company that is also a Kentucky-based company that:\n1. Films or produces a feature -length film, television program, industrial\nfilm, video game, or music video in whole or in part in the\nCommonwealth, the minimum combined total of qu alifying\nexpenditures and qualifying payroll expenditures shall be two hundred\nthousand dollars ($200,000);\n2. Produces a national touring production of a Broadway show in whole or\nin part in the Commonwealth, the minimum combined total of\nqualifying expenditures and qualifying payroll expenditures shall be\ntwenty thousand dollars ($20,000); or\n3. Films or produces  a documentary in whole or in part in the\nCommonwealth, the minimum combined total of qualifying\nexpenditures and qualifying payroll expenditures shall be ten thousand\ndollars ($10,000); and\n(c) For an approved company that is not a Kentucky-based company that:\n1. Films or produces a feature -length film, television program, industrial\nfilm, video game, or music video in whole or in part in the\nCommonwealth, the minimum combined total of qualifying\nexpenditures and qualifying payroll expenditures shall be fo ur hundred\nthousand dollars ($400,000); or\n2. Films or produces a documentary in whole or in part in the\nCommonwealth or that produces a national touring production of a\nBroadway show, the minimum combined total of qualifying\nexpenditures and qualifying pa yroll expenditures shall be twenty\nthousand dollars ($20,000).\n(4) (a) Beginning on January 1, 2022, the total tax incentive approved under KRS\n141.383 and this subchapter shall be limited to seventy -five million dollars\n($75,000,000) for calendar year 2022 and each calendar year thereafter.\n(b) Beginning with calendar year 2024:\n1. Twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,000) shall be allocated for all\napproved companies with a continuous film production; and\n2. On the first day of July of each calendar year,  any unused balance of the\namount allocated under subparagraph 1. of this paragraph for continuous\nfilm productions shall be made available for all approved companies\nwith motion picture or entertainment productions.\n(c) Beginning with calendar year 2026, any unallocated balance of the amount\nallocated in paragraph (a) of this subsection for the previous calendar year\nshall carry forward into the subsequent calendar year to be made available for\napproved companies with high -impact motion pictures, continuou s film\nproductions, or entertainment productions. The council shall promulgate\nadministrative regulations in accordance with KRS Chapter 13A to establish\nthe criteria for a high-impact motion picture or entertainment production.\n(5) (a) To qualify for the tax incentive available under KRS 141.383 and this\nsubchapter, all applicants shall:\n1. Begin filming or production in Kentucky within one hundred eighty\n(180) days of approval by the council;\n2. Complete filming or production in Kentucky within two (2) ye ars of the\nfilming or production start date; and\n3. Submit a certified audit to the office.\n(b) The tax credit shall be against the Kentucky income tax imposed under KRS\n141.020 or 141.040, and the limited liability entity tax imposed under KRS\n141.0401, and shall be refundable as provided in KRS 141.383.\n(c) 1. For a continuous film production filmed or produced in any Kentucky\ncounty, or a feature -length film, television program, industrial film,\ndocumentary, video game, music video, or national touring p roduction\nof a Broadway show filmed or produced in its entirety in a heritage\ncounty, the amount of the incentive shall be equal to thirty -five percent\n(35%) of the approved company's:\na. Qualifying expenditures;\nb. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to resident and nonresident\nbelow-the-line production crew; and\nc. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to resident and nonresident\nabove-the-line production crew not to exceed one million dollars\n($1,000,000) in payroll expenditures per employee.\n2. a. To the extent the approved company films or produces a motion\npicture or continuous film production in part in a heritage county\nand in part in a Kentucky county that is not a heritage county, the\napproved company shall be eligible to receive the incentives\nprovided in this paragraph for those expenditures incurred in the\nheritage county and all other expenditures shall be subject to the\nincentives provided in paragraph (d) of this subsection.\nb. The approved company shall track the requisite expenditures by\ncounty. If the approved company can demonstrate to the\nsatisfaction of the cabinet that it is not practical to use a separate\naccounting method to determine the expenditures by county, the\napproved company shall determine the correct expenditures by\ncounty using an alternative method approved by the cabinet.\n(d) For a commercial filmed or produced in any Kentucky county, or a feature -\nlength film, television program, industrial film, documentary, video game,\nmusic video or national touring production of a Broad way show filmed or\nproduced in whole or in part in any Kentucky county other than in a heritage\ncounty, the amount of the incentive shall be equal to:\n1. Thirty percent (30%) of the approved company's:\na. Qualifying expenditures;\nb. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to below -the-line production\ncrew that are not residents; and\nc. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to above -the-line production\ncrew that are not residents, not to exceed one million dollars\n($1,000,000) in payroll expenditures per employee; and\n2. Thirty-five percent (35%) of the approved company's:\na. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to resident below -the-line\nproduction crew; and\nb. Qualifying payroll expenditures paid to resident above -the-line\nproduction crew not to exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000) in\npayroll expenditures per employee.","path":[],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=58153","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:57Z","sha256":"294dc9bcda4c64f6adc7481417c3779738de09a729a1b8004bfc3bb87e15c684","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-154.61-010","next":"us-ky/krs-154.61-030"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}