Bill Text: VA HB1267 | 2024 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: Governor's Major Entertainment Opportunity Fund; renames Governor's Motion Picture Opportunity Fund.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-02-13 - Left in Appropriations [HB1267 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2024-HB1267-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§2.2-2318, 2.2-2320, and 58.1-1733 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§2.2-2318. Powers of Authority.
The Authority, acting through the Executive Director, shall be granted all powers necessary or appropriate to carry out and to effectuate its purposes, including the following to:
1. Have perpetual succession as a public body corporate and as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth;
2. Adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws, rules, and regulations, not inconsistent with this article for the administration and regulation of its affairs, to carry into effect the powers and purposes of the Authority and the conduct of its business;
3. Sue and be sued in its own name;
4. Have an official seal and alter it at will although the failure to affix this seal shall not affect the validity of any instrument executed on behalf of the Authority;
5. Maintain an office at any place within or without the Commonwealth that it designates;
6. Make and execute contracts and all other instruments and agreements necessary or convenient for the performance of its duties and the exercise of its powers and functions under this article;
7. Acquire real or personal property, or any interest therein, by purchase, exchange, gift, assignment, transfer, foreclosure, lease, or otherwise, including rights or easements, and hold, manage, operate, or improve such property;
8. Sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease, exchange, transfer, and otherwise dispose of all or any part of its properties and assets;
9. Employ officers, employees, agents, advisers, and consultants, including without limitation, financial advisers and other technical advisers and public accountants and, the provisions of any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, to determine their duties and compensation without the approval of any other agency or instrumentality;
10. Procure insurance, in amounts and from insurers of its choice, or provide self-insurance, against any loss, cost, or expense in connection with its property, assets, or activities, including insurance or self-insurance against liability for its acts or the acts of its directors, employees, or agents and for the indemnification of the members of its Board and its employees and agents;
11. Receive and accept from any source aid, grants, and contributions of money, property, labor, or other things of value to be held, used, and applied to carry out the purposes of this article subject to the conditions upon which the aid, grants, or contributions are made;
12. Enter into agreements with any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States, the Commonwealth, the District of Columbia, or any state for purposes consistent with its mission;
13. Establish and revise, amend, and repeal, and charge and collect, fees and charges in connection with any activities or services of the Authority;
14. Make grants to local governments with any funds of the Authority available for this purpose;
15. Develop policies and procedures generally applicable to the procurement of goods, services, and construction based on competitive principles;
16. Issue periodicals and carry and charge for advertising therein;
17. Raise money in the corporate, nonprofit, and nonstate communities to finance the Authority's activities;
18. Support and encourage each locality to foster its own tourism development programs;
19. Enter into agreements with public or private entities that provide participating funding to establish and operate tourism centers, funded jointly by the entity and the Authority, as shall be determined by the Executive Director, and as approved by the Authority;
20. Encourage, stimulate, and support tourism in the Commonwealth by promoting, marketing, and advertising the Commonwealth's many tourist attractions and locations;
21. Encourage, stimulate, and support the film industry in the Commonwealth;
22. Do all things necessary or proper to administer and manage
the Cooperative Tourism Advertising Fund and the Governor's Motion
Picture Major Entertainment
Opportunity Fund;
23. Update a travel guide for the disabled in the first year of every biennium beginning in fiscal year 2003;
24. Develop a comprehensive plan to promote destinations of historical and other significance located throughout the Commonwealth in anticipation of the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown settlement; and
25. Do any act necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers granted or reasonably implied by this article and not otherwise inconsistent with state law.
§2.2-2320. Governor's Major Entertainment Opportunity Fund.
A. For the purposes of this section:
"Fund" means the Governor's Major Entertainment Opportunity Fund created pursuant to subsection B.
"Live events and performances" means events in which several musical or artistic performances are held in conjunction during a fixed period of time for the purpose of entertaining an audience and attracting tourism.
"Motion picture films and productions" means feature films, children's programs, documentaries, television series, or other television programs that have the potential to increase tourism by highlighting the Commonwealth. "Motion picture film and productions" does not include industrial, corporate, or commercial production projects, education programs not intended for rebroadcast, adult films, music videos, and news shows or reports.
"Sporting events" means individual or team professional sports, amateur sports, or college sports contests, tournaments, exhibitions, championships, or qualifying events designed to entertain spectators and increase tourism.
B. There
is created a Governor's Motion Picture Major Entertainment
Opportunity Fund (the Fund) to be used, in the
sole discretion of the Governor, to support the film
and video industries major entertainment events
not regularly scheduled in Virginia by providing the means
for attracting production companies and producers who make their
projects entertainment operations and
projects with spectators or participants in the
Commonwealth using Virginia employees, goods,
and services. The Fund shall consist of any moneys appropriated to it in the
general appropriation act or revenue from any other source. The Fund shall be
established on the books of the Comptroller and any moneys remaining in the
Fund at the end of a biennium shall not revert to the general fund but shall
remain in the Fund. Interest earned on the Fund shall be credited to the Fund.
The Fund shall be used by the Governor to assist production companies or producers and incentivize major entertainment events
that meet the eligibility requirements set forth in the guidelines. The
Authority shall assist the Governor in the development of guidelines, procedures, and objective criteria
for the use of the Fund, including the awarding and
distribution of grants. The guidelines may require that as
a condition of receiving any grant or loan incentive that is based on
employment goals, a recipient company must provide copies of employer quarterly
payroll reports provided to the Virginia Employment Commission to verify the
employment status of any position included in the employment goal. The
guidelines (i) should include provisions
for geographic diversity and a cap on the amount of money available for a
certain project and (ii) shall require matching
funds for any grant awarded from the Fund. The types of
projects eligible for consideration will shall be feature
films, children's programs, documentaries, television series or other
television programs designed to fit a thirty-minute or longer format slot sporting events, live events and performances, and
motion picture films and
productions. Projects not eligible are
industrial, corporate or commercial projects, education programs not intended
for rebroadcast, adult films, music videos and news shows or reports.
In order to qualify for a grant from the Fund, a grant recipient shall enter into a performance agreement with the Authority that contains, at a minimum, provisions regarding disbursement of the grant, use of funds, reporting requirements, and repayment obligations in the event that the recipient fails to meet the terms of the performance agreement. Any repayment of grant funds required by such performance agreement shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund.
§58.1-1733. Disposition of proceeds.
After the administrative costs for collecting the fees are recovered by the Department of Taxation, the remaining revenues shall be divided as follows:
1. Fifty percent shall be deposited into the state's general fund; and
2. Fifty percent shall be deposited into the Governor's Motion Picture Major Entertainment
Opportunity Fund established under §2.2-2320. All revenues deposited to the
Fund shall be used for film incentive programs established by the Virginia Film
Office.
