At our annual meeting in June 2004, Jay Roth said that "trade based remedies" are not selected by the DGA as appropriate for our Guild to participate in or pursue, but he also said that the Guild would not "rule out" any suggestion.   In the past, our PAC (Political Action Committee) has emphasized that it is important the Industry "speak with one voice" in Washington, D.C. in order to have any hope of convincing Congressional Legislators to pass a law that would provide incentives for motion picture studios to reconsider making more of their movies in the USA.

The Federal legislation which is moving through Congress presently takes a "tax relief" philosophy (for movie studios), and this is  the single Federal strategy which our Guild is solidly behind.
Don Newman, a fellow Guild member, member of FTAC and a frequent questioner of the "single strategy" approach, has been studying another approach to asking our Federal Government to help affect our worklives by "leveling the playing field" via petitioning the US Trade Representative to protest the Canadian wage subsidies via the 'trade based' remedy known as a "301 Petition."  FTAC has been vigorously attempting to pursue this "trade based" remedy (301 Petition) even while the legislative approach is being pursued.  Presently, as the article above from the NY Times says, FTAC is gathering more support within the Industry (Labor, mostly) and are petitioning the President and the Department of Commerce directly to take a long hard look at our nation's trade agreements with countries like Australia and Canada and see if indeed there are violations to those agreements being committed by the wage subsidies offered in those countries"

There has been much press coverage of both of these ideas, but there has also been some friction created within our Industry because there is disagreement on whether the legislation (if it passes ultimately) will be enough to make a meaningful difference on the Runaway Production Issue.  While that strategy is the sum and substance of our PAC's Federal thrust, this uncertainty weighs on all of us.
While we all ponder and wonder if our Industry will be able to regain important jobs, we also are left to learn the ins and outs of political lobbying, international economics & trade practices, Corporate tax relief, Financial Incentives offered by Countries & States alike, etc.   It's an awful lot to take in, and it can leave us feeling confused, fearful, and paralyzed with indecision about what we  can or should do ourselves to help fight Runaway Production.

It is important to note that as a Guild member, AD/UPM Council Member, (& friend of Don's - who galvanized me to work on this issue in a meaningful way) , I am most interested in making sure that the discussion  and inquiries on Runaway Production within the Guild's rank and file as well as among the Staff and the National Board, is as intelligently informed as possible, is vigorous, is ongoing, is evolving,, is broadbased to include local and state as well as federal issues, , and yet is also focused on the priorities that hope to bring all of us in the Industry  real results as soon as possible.

It has been over three years since the legislative approaches have been initiated with the guidance of our PAC and others, and now, more than ever, "time is of the essence."  By keeping the discussion broad and inclusive of the "trade based" proposed remedies (whether  or not they ultimately have any merit or efficaciousness), I feel that our Guild, it's lobbyists and its PAC are, and will continue to be,  more acutely aware of this "sense of urgency" we filmworkers are trying to transmit to them.  That is why I've put "301 Petition" information and Don Newman's note to you  below.  So I hope you'll read  and investigate the complexities of both the legislation moving through Congress as well as the "trade based"  (301 Petition) approach Don describes below.

I also hope that this "Resource and Information" collection of web pages also impresses upon  the decision makers in our Political Action Committee  (our PAC) and our DGA National Board &  staff with  the Rank & File's collective desire that our Political efforts should make a meaningful difference as soon as possible in bringing back some of the important large feature film work which has been lost to Runaway Production.    The DGA is among the leaders in the effort to reverse Runaway Production, and the entire industry depends on the quality of the efforts our Guild puts forth to be first rate and on point.

Of course,, historically consistent from the beginning of the Guild's existence, , the Industry  has always depended on the DGA to bring forth visionary approaches to redefining what it means to make pictures better and more efficiently.  This is nothing new.  Our Guild is made up of Leaders, and Leaders Lead.  Now that International workplaces are abounding,, our Guild faces profound challenges in order remain the voice of leadership it has been in the past.  I support our representatives as they continue to shape our Guild's ongoing efforts to halt Runaway Production.

Meanwhile, I urge you to Please contribute to our Guild's Political Action Committee (PAC - information about it is at http://dga.org) via your dues statement or directly with your check.
Even while our newly revitalized AD/UPM Council's Runaway Production Committee works toward keeping the focus of our Guild on this "sense of urgency," it is important that the broadest participation in the political efforts of our PAC be amplified and continued.  If the DGA is truly destined to remain relevant in the fight to halt and reverse Runaway Production, it will only be because ALL of us who are earning in a DGA covered capacity contribute financially to our Political fight via the PAC.  If the DGA loses relevance in Washington, D.C., then surely the entire Industry will also lose its effectiveness, and any legislative efforts now or in the future will fail.

We've gone down this Political road out of necessity, and if we don't succeed somehow we will bear witness to the deconstruction of the domestic motion picture production industry in large part and in our time.
That is simply the fact of the matter, and that is simply why it is that important that our DGA PAC regains the support of ADs, UPMs, SMs, PAs, & TDs, as well as our Directors, who have become awakened to their obligation and are inadvertently leaving many of the rest of us with the impression that the PAC can thrive without our meager support.  Well, it can't, unfortunately, and as difficult as this has become, the push for legislators to support our interests promiese to remain difficult into the future.  We must focus our resources intelligently, but we all must bring some of our resources to bear in this work.

So, if you are lucky enough to be earning in a DGA capacity, you really ought to be burning a check to the DGA PAC.  (and if you can make a difference in the National Election in the Fall by volunteering or contributing to the Presidential campaign, obviously, this is a priority)

Robert Mendel