There’s still time on Monday to phone your state senator and urge him to vote “no” on Senate Bill 4 coming up for passage Tuesday in the Senate in Springfield.
You can also join a protest group being bused down to the Capitol by volunteers Tuesday morning.
“When you contact your senator’s district office, be sure to fax the facts first – they don’t read Emails — and follow up with a telephone call, because these people are really clueless about this issue,” advises producer Michelle DeLong of Mimi Productions, who spent a lot of time on the phone with legislators last week.
DeLong was shocked to learn that the co-sponsors of the original SB4 bill -– Senators Dan Kotowski (33rd Dist.), John Jones (54th Dist.) and Gary Forby (59th Dist.) — knew nothing about the sunset clause amendment, “which was stuck on the bottom of the bill by someone in the House, without investigation or provocation,” she says.
“One aide I spoke to told me, ‘People have been calling but I didn’t know what they were talking about.’”
While industry leaders attempt to work their magic behind the scenes in removing the sunset clause from SB4, you are urged to call your senator’s Springfield office Monday.
When calling, tell your senator your name and how you make your living in the film industry and that you are opposed to an amendment with a sunset provision for these reasons:
1) The Film Tax Credit is the driving force that creates jobs for thousands of Illinois workers in the film industry.
2) It allows Illinois to remain competitive among other states offering similar incentives because it specifically does not have a sunset.
3) Producers rely on long-term horizon when making decisions about where to shoot. Television series, especially, such as “The Chicago Code,” are on five year plans; this means SB 4’s impact on TV production in Illinois would be immediate and would eliminate the consideration of any future TV series in Illinois.
4) The new Cinespace Chicago studio, which will provide 6,000 jobs, has stated it will leave Chicago if this bill passes.
5) A periodic review of the tax credit’s effectiveness can be accomplished without a sunset.
Get on the bus and join the Springfield rally Tuesday morning
If you want to join a protest to defeat SB4, sign up at here and join hundreds of extras and actors who will be bused down to the Capitol Tuesday morning.
ExtraOrdinary Casting owner Darlene Hunt and Teamsters’ member Ann Stuart organized the rally and the bus transportation.
Five buses, each seating 48 persons, will be available for boarding starting at 6 a.m., in the Park & Ride area of the Blue Line-River Road parking lot. All day parking there is $2.
“We are allowing three hours travel time and expect to arrive in Springfield between 9:30 and 10 a.m.,” says Stuart, who will drive one of the buses. “We will depart at a reasonable hour for our return to Chicago.”
A $5 per person donation will cover the volunteer drivers’ time and the cost of fuel.
