Creative Economy Task Force; established, strategic plan, report, sunset.

HOUSE BILL NO. 1249

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE

(Proposed by the House Committee on Appropriations

on February 11, 2026)

(Patron Prior to Substitute--Delegate Glass)

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered
2.2-2355.1
, relating to Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority; Creative Economy Task Force established; strategic plan; report; sunset.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered
2.2-2355.1
as follows:

§ 2.2-
2355.1
.
Creative Eco
nomy Task Force; strategic plan; report
; sunset
.

A.
For
purposes of this section,
"
c
reative economy" means industries that have their origin in individual creativity, skill, and talent and that have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property, including production of audio, video, or visual content; literary or performing arts; production of film, music, software, or video games; production of physical goods, including instruments, art, crafts, furniture, robotics, and taxidermy; and television or radio.

B.
There is
established
within the
Authority
the

Creative Economy Task Force (the Task Force) for the purpose of developing a strategic plan to improve the creative economy in the Commonwealth.

C
. The Task Force shall consist of
nine
members as follows:

1. The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Authority
, who shall serve as chair of the Task Force
;

2. One representative from the financial services industry with experience in small
business financing and federal Small Business Administration programs to be appointed by the Authority;

3. One representative from the Virginia Economic
Development Partnership Authority;

4
. One representative from a private firm with experience in financial modeling and the creative arts to be appointed by the Authority; and

5
. F
ive representatives from the arts and creative industries in the Commonwealth to be appointed by the Authority,
of whom
(i)
one shall be a representative of the
film, television, or video production
industry
; (ii)
one shall be a representative of the
recorded music or audio production
industry
; (iii)
one shall be a representative of the
animation or video game de
velopment
industry
; (iv)
one shall be a representative of the
live performance
industry
, including
the
theater, music, or dance
industr
ies
; and (v)
one shall be a representative of the
visual arts
industry
, including
the
painting, photography,
or
graphic design
industries
.

D
.
The Task Force shall collect and
analyze
data on the s
tate of the creative economy in the Commonwealth and develop a phased strategic plan to enhance the
creative
sector's contributions to economic growth, talent retention, social equity, and exportable content creation.
Such
strategic pla
n shall:

1. Identify and synthesize existing studies on the creative economy, including tax,
demographic
, legislative, and employment analyses;

2.
Compare best practices and policy models from other jurisdictions with successful creative economy initiatives, including the states of Georgia and New Mexico and the provinces of
British Columbia and Ontario;

3. Conduct stakeholder interviews to determine optimal frameworks for creative economy growth in the Commonwealth;

4. Evaluate private sector banking models and propose a public-private financial framework to incentivize investment in creative projects;

5. Review existing
state and local tax incentives and recommend modifications to better support creative enterprises;

6. Assess the role of localities in fostering creative economy ecosystems and recommend collaborative frameworks tailored to the needs of specific counties and cities;
and

7. Prioritize historically marginalize
d communities and ensure inclusive representation and impact in plan implementation.

E
. The Task Force shall submit a report of its finding
s
and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations by
November

1, 2027.

F
. The Authority shall provide staff support to the Task Force. Members of the Task Force shall serve without compensation but may receive reimbursement for expenses as provided in §
2.2-2825
.

G
. The provisions of this section shall expire on
January
1, 2028.