Louisiana Offers Rebates on Recording; What About Colorado?

LOUISIANA OFFERS REBATES ON RECORDING; WHAT ABOUT COLORADO?

Joe Michaels, President of Snapped on the River Music, has been talking to one of our State Senators, Rachel Zenzinger, about the possibility of Colorado offering an incentive program in our state similar to what the state of Louisiana offers. Joe has done most of his recording in LA (the state) because of that program.

Here is what Ms. Zenzinger had to say about the matter:

I put in a research request to our nonpartisan economist from the Colorado Legislative Council about the program offered in Louisiana. They reported that Louisiana indeed offers an income tax credit for music production, known as the Louisiana Sound Recording Investor Tax Credit. The credit is equal to 25 percent of a producer’s “base investment,” defined as costs incurred in Louisiana that are directly related to the production of music, including: studio rental fees; artist and musician salaries; producing, mixing, and mastering fees; instrument rental; and travel expenses. Costs associated with duplication, distribution, and marketing of music are not considered base investments. Eligibility is restricted to productions for which the base investment is no less than $5,000, for Louisiana residents, or $15,000 for nonresidents. The total maximum value of the credit is capped at $3 million for a single tax year. The tax credit is issued as a rebate following the project’s certification and may exceed the recipient’s income tax liability.

In order to qualify for the credit, a production must be certified by Louisiana Entertainment, a state agency.  To be certified, the producer must present a plan for distributing the music in addition to other documents, including a preliminary budget and, later, a CPA-certified project cost report. The credit was created in 2005 and is available through the end of 2019. Additional information can be found at the Louisiana Entertainment website, here.

Currently, there is no tax incentive for music production in Colorado statute. Staff contacted the Colorado Music Business Organization (COMBO) to see if there was any interest or requests to create such a program. They were unfamiliar with any proposals to create a similar credit in our state.

My suggestion, would be to approach the COMBO president, Barb Dye, and see if she might be able to make the members aware and perhaps create a coalition of people from the industry. Barb Dye can be reached at (303) 832-5505 or at info@coloradomusic.org. If we can get more people on board with the idea perhaps we can generate some momentum!

Rachel Zenzinger | Senate Dist. 19 | Room 339, 200 E. Colfax Ave., Denver, CO 80203
303-866-4840
SenatorRachelZ@gmail.com

[Barb’s note: Please call or send me an e-mail letting me know if YOU would like to be on such a committee. This bears further discussion. Recording studio people would benefit from this program in particular if they could attract out-of-state musicians who could take advantage of the rebate.]

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CLEAR CHANNEL RENAMED i-HEART MEDIA

NEW YORK (AP) — Clear Channel, the largest radio station operator in the U.S., says it has renamed itself iHeartMedia to reflect its transformation into a multi-platform media company that includes iHeartRadio, its digital radio service.

The new company, which is privately held, owns 859 radio stations in more than 150 markets. IHeartRadio, meanwhile, has more than 90 million monthly unique visitors. It also owns part of Clear Channel Outdoor, an outdoor advertising company, and runs live music events.

The name change reflects the company’s shifting focus to its digital brand as it faces competition from popular music streaming services like Pandora and Spotify. In June, CEO Bob Pittman said iHeartRadio makes “hundreds of millions” of dollars in annual revenue.

Clear Channel Communications Inc. was founded in 1972 and was taken private in 2008.

http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_26543785/clear-channel-renamed-iheartmedia

The Associated Press