In 2002, Louisiana lawmakers passed a 30 percent film tax credit. Since then, the state has become the third most productive in the industry, second only to New York and California.
In New Orleans, the impact has been especially impressive. Studios there spent $661 million last year, and native workers are being hired at accelerating rates. Between 2006 and 2011, the number of city residents working full-time for the film industry quadrupled.
Actors, too, have begun to leave Los Angeles for New Orleans. The difference in lifestyle is a pull factor. “There’s better food, nobody cares what you drive, and it’s cheaper to live,” says actress Laura Cayoutte about her move from the West Coast to the Gulf Coast.
Not all Louisianans are happy about the film-industry influx. The tax credit was never meant to be permanent, and has cost the state more than $1 billion since it passed. But local film-industry boosters argue that it has done the state more good than a simple financial analysis could ever show.
Read the full story: Forget Hollywood. Filmmakers are Flocking to New Orleans
Report: Beware the 'Race to the Bottom' of Film Tax Credits
The California Legislative Analyst's Office released a report, "Film and Television Production: Overview of Motion Picture Industry and State Tax Credits," which recommends caution by lawmakers considering an extension of the state's tax credit.
Op-ed: Finding the value in LA’s emptiest parks
Los Angeles has the nation's largest dog population, but a measly 14 dog parks. Adaptive reuse can help bridge this gap.
Study: New Orleans sea level rise is at 'point of no return'
Research shows that the city could be surrounded by water by the end of this century.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
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Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
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Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority