Goodness, cleaning up the sloppiness of reporters could be a full time job. In response to The Daily Caller's
online inquiry, I gave them a statement that the writer buried on his
story’s second page (which most people won’t even notice – I didn’t even
notice it) after he spent the first page completely spinning a
situation to give the impression that Alaska’s film production tax
credit legislation was somehow solely my idea hatched up to benefit the
Palins years before I was ever involved in a documentary series on
TLC/Discovery Channel. Here’s setting the record straight: As Governor, I
signed into law a popular bipartisan bill that was crafted and passed
by others and has resulted in numerous Alaska-based productions
that are airing today. The only alternative to signing the
legislature’s work product would have been for me to veto their
legislation, which would have been useless. Besides all that, their
legislation worked.
This bill was not some secret big government agenda. These Alaskan
legislators just wanted Alaska to be able to compete with the many other
states that offer similar incentives. As I noted in my statement (which
was curiously buried by The Daily Caller – whose
editor-in-chief was recently called on the carpet for publicly using a
degrading term to describe women), I can’t speak for the film tax credit
programs in other states, but the program in Alaska has been effective.
The bipartisan legislation I signed into law in 2008 was borne out of
elected lawmakers’ frustration with the fact that shows and films about
Alaska were mostly filmed elsewhere. They wanted to incentivize
production companies to film in Alaska instead of Canada, Washington
state, or Maine. Their bill worked, and as the legislation’s supporters
will testify, the state’s economy enjoys the benefits of having this
production money circulating right here at home. It was so successful
that state lawmakers now want to renew the film production tax credits
for another ten years. Keep in mind that we don’t have a state income
tax, state sales tax, or state property tax in Alaska. Our state
government is predominately funded by oil and gas revenue. Essentially
we are using revenue generated from the development of Alaska’s natural
resources in order to diversify our economy and create jobs beyond just
resource development. Not only does this help promote a new film
industry in Alaska, it obviously also has the added benefit of
encouraging our tourism industry. These shows and films about Alaska act
as perfect tourist advertisements for our state. People come here to
experience what they see on the shows filmed here. The dramatic increase
in Alaska-based television shows and films are testament to the fact
that this legislation worked, and it’s exciting to see our state
showcased and appreciated. There has been more film productions here
than ever before, and the economic benefit of filming here exceeds the
tax credit.
And another point missed by this reporter: apparently The Daily Caller’s
conspiracy theory must be that I did all of this not even to benefit
myself but Mark Burnett Productions. As I tried to explain to the writer
at The Daily Caller, if you believe in this bizarre scenario
then why not ask the sponsors, drafters, and supporters of this
legislation that would boost job creation if they crafted this bill
years ago in order to benefit Sarah Palin. Any suggestion that I somehow
did something wrong by signing this legislation is ridiculous. The
accusation hinges on the notion that I signed the legislation into law
knowing that it would personally benefit me. That’s totally absurd. It
wasn’t even my bill, and obviously I had no intention of benefiting from
it when I signed it into law in 2008 because I had no idea I would be
involved in a documentary series years later. If you’re going to accuse
me of benefiting from legislation I signed into law, why stop there? Go
ahead and accuse me of “benefiting” from the legislation my
administration actually did craft – like for example, our oil and gas
evaluation legislation (ACES). You could say I “benefited” from it in
the sense that due to ACES the state where I live (Alaska) now enjoys a
$12 billion surplus. In fact, you could say that as an Alaskan, I
benefited from all of the legislation I championed or signed as governor
– just as every Alaskan benefited.
As I also tried to tell the reporter, it’s also a false accusation to
suggest that signing this bipartisan bill somehow goes against my
position on the proper role of government. I’ve said many times that
government can play an appropriate role in incentivizing business,
creating infrastructure, and leveling the playing field to foster
competition so the market picks winners and losers, instead of
bureaucrats burdening businesses and picking winners and losers. Again, I
can’t speak for what other states do, but Alaska’s film production tax
credit program was an effective way to incentivize a new industry that
would diversify our economy. It worked. The lawmakers’ successful
legislation fit Alaska’s economy, as our economy is quite unique from
other states’ due to our oil and gas revenue. Perhaps it would behoove
people to learn much more about the 49th state’s young economy before
making broad accusations about the efficacy of business programs. People
who live in ivory towers don’t understand the real world where
governors and lawmakers actually have to fight to attract business and
jobs to their states.
One final thought: having to set the record straight on my Facebook
page yet again is further proof that the media can’t be trusted even to
print a statement in a manner that people can read.
- Sarah Palin