A broad-based coalition — including journalists and news leaders from across Colorado, publishers of color, broadcasters, nonpartisan civic groups, and national thought leaders — testified yesterday in support of House Bill 22-1121 at a committee hearing.
State lawmakers voted 8-2 in favor of the tax credit for small businesses that spend money to advertise in Colorado news outlets. Three representatives who are small business owners abstained from the vote.
LISTEN TO AUDIO FOR THE HEARING
Colorado House Business Affairs and Labor Committee (March 10, 2022)
Hear Rep. Sullivan’s emotional comments about the important role the Aurora Sentinel has played in providing sensitive, accurate, community-based coverage of the theater shooting that took his son’s life
MEETING COVERAGE
By Jeffrey A. Roberts
Executive Director, Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A committee of state lawmakers Thursday endorsed a tax credit for small businesses that spend money to advertise in Colorado news outlets.
House Bill 22-1121, introduced by Democratic Rep. Lisa Cutter of Littleton, is designed to boost revenue for print, online and broadcast news organizations.
“This is one way we can help local media, and in the process, help our communities grow stronger,” Cutter told members of the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee, which voted 8-3 for the bill.
Under the measure, businesses with fewer than 50 employees could take a credit against their annual income taxes of up to $2,500. To qualify, they must advertise in news organizations that primarily serve the needs of Colorado communities and employ at least one journalist who lives and works in the state.
During the hearing, committee members heard all sorts of statistics about the long-term decline in the number of news organizations in Colorado and the number of journalists working in the state. But they also learned about groups such as the Colorado Media Project, the Colorado News Collaborative and the Colorado News Conservancy that are working to strengthen the state’s local news landscape.
“This is an evolving and innovative industry and it’s by no means failing,” said Linda Shapley, publisher of the 26 Colorado Community Media newspapers.
Read the full story, including more comments
from legislators, on the CFOIC website
more VOICES FROM THE HEARING
Amy Gillentine, Publisher, Colorado Springs Business Journal: “Even as the pandemic recedes, the lingering effects harm small businesses. The advertising dollars that local businesses spend with our local papers go back into our community. We are also a small business, and we were hit hard by the pandemic.”
Bee Harris, Owner and Publisher, Denver Urban Spectrum: “There are 400+ Black-owned businesses in and around Denver. I am confident that the passing of this bill will benefit them, and help them increase their bottom line.”
Chris Fresquez, El Seminario: “Our main source of revenue is advertising from local businesses - the majority, small businesses. They, we understand our communities. The pandemic has brought extreme hardship on many of us.”
Kathleen Wilson, League of Women Voters of Colorado: “The citizens of Colorado need access to reliable information and news sources regarding the workings of their local governments, boards and agencies whose decisions impact their daily lives. … As a vital component of the civic ecosystem, local news outlets support a citizen’s right to know, through local reporting. When a local news media outlet closes, thereby creating a news desert, actual citizen information will be limited to in-person meeting attendance by the public, watching livestream/online meeting broadcasts or recordings (if they’re available), word of mouth sharing, or social media - some of which can be less reliable sources. We laud the improvements regarding the definitions of eligible and ineligible news outlets delineated in Rep. Cutter’s amendments. … These stipulations work to block organizations whose intent is to advance partisan political messaging from qualifying as eligible news outlets.”
Steve Waldman, Rebuild Local News Coalition: “We’re happy to see local news outlets, funders, civic organizations and businesses support this bill. We particularly appreciate that this is a way of helping local news without having the government pick and choose favorite outlets. Instead, the tax credit goes to Colorado small businesses, which, in turn, decide which local news source best fits their needs and, we would hope, has built up trust from the community through years of fair journalism. We also believe that this bill could act as a model for other states and the United States Congress.”