Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of the ``Help Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act,'' which Senator Blackburn and I introduced today. Representatives Linda Sanchez (D-CA) and Ron Estes (R-KS) have introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have consistently heard from independent musicians and producers in California who have lost a large percentage of their incomes due to concerts, festivals, and other events being cancelled. With many live performance stages and venues across the Nation closed for months as a result of the pandemic, independent musicians and music makers such as technicians and creators have suffered significant loss of income. According to a survey by the Copyright Alliance, 88 percent of creators have lost income due to the coronavirus pandemic, which is more than double the national average. Approximately half of survey respondents had lost 90 percent or more of their income. Our bill would provide some relief to music creators by allowing independent musicians, technicians, and music producers to deduct the cost of producing new musical recordings, putting them on a level playing field with other arts productions. The U.S. Tax Code allows film, television, and theater productions to fully deduct production expenses in the year they are incurred.…”