FILM Act

Summary: Facilitating Investments in Local Markets Act or the FILM Act Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the expensing of the costs of qualified film and television productions, to: (1) extend through 2016 provisions allowing such expensing, and (2) allow such expensing for the costs of certain live theatrical productions. 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Facilitating Investments in Local 
Markets Act'' or the ``FILM Act''.

SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF SPECIAL EXPENSING RULES FOR CERTAIN FILM AND 
              TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS; SPECIAL EXPENSING FOR LIVE 
              THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 181(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended by striking ``December 31, 2014'' and inserting 
``December 31, 2016''.
    (b) Application to Live Productions.--
            (1) In general.--Section 181(a)(1) of such Code is amended 
        by inserting ``, and any qualified live theatrical 
        production,'' after ``any qualified film or television 
        production''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 181 of such Code is 
        amended--
                    (A) by inserting ``or any qualified live theatrical 
                production'' after ``qualified film or television 
                production'' each place it appears in subsections 
                (a)(2), (b), and (c)(1),
                    (B) by inserting ``or qualified live theatrical 
                productions'' after ``qualified film or television 
                productions'' in subsection (f), and
                    (C) by inserting ``and live theatrical'' after 
                ``film and television'' in the heading.
            (3) Clerical amendment.--The item relating to section 181 
        in the table of sections for part VI of subchapter B of chapter 
        1 of such Code is amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 181. Treatment of certain qualified film and television and live 
                            theatrical productions.''.
    (c) Qualified Live Theatrical Production.--Section 181 of such Code 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f), as amended by 
        subsections (a) and (b), as subsections (f) and (g), 
        respectively, and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(e) Qualified Live Theatrical Production.--For purposes of this 
section--
            ``(1) In general.--The term `qualified live theatrical 
        production' means any production described in paragraph (2) if 
        75 percent of the total compensation of the production is 
        qualified compensation (as defined in subsection (d)(3)).
            ``(2) Production.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A production is described in 
                this paragraph if such production is a live staged 
                production of a play (with or without music) which is 
                derived from a written book or script and is produced 
                or presented by a taxable entity in any venue which has 
                an audience capacity of not more than 3,000 or a series 
                of venues the majority of which have an audience 
                capacity of not more than 3,000.
                    ``(B) Touring companies, etc.--In the case of 
                multiple live staged productions--
                            ``(i) for which the election under this 
                        section would be allowable to the same 
                        taxpayer, and
                            ``(ii) which are--
                                    ``(I) separate phases of a 
                                production, or
                                    ``(II) separate simultaneous 
                                stagings of the same production in 
                                different geographical locations (not 
                                including multiple performance 
                                locations of any one touring 
                                production),
                each such live staged production shall be treated as a 
                separate production.
                    ``(C) Phase.--For purposes of subparagraph (B), the 
                term `phase' with respect to any qualified live 
                theatrical production refers to each of the following, 
                but only if each of the following is treated by the 
                taxpayer as a separate activity for all purposes of 
                this title:
                            ``(i) The initial staging of a live 
                        theatrical production.
                            ``(ii) Subsequent additional stagings or 
                        touring of such production which are produced 
                        by the same producer as the initial staging.
                    ``(D) Exception.--A production is not described in 
                this paragraph if such production includes or consists 
                of any performance of conduct described in section 
                2257(h)(1) of title 18, United States Code.''.
    (d) Effective Dates.--
            (1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        apply to productions commencing after December 31, 2014.
            (2) Commencement.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the date 
        on which a qualified live theatrical production commences is 
        the date of the first public performance of such production for 
        a paying audience.