The DGA PAC Leadership Council was very active in March, with a second Congressional meeting taking place at the Guild on March 22. This meeting was a lunch with Congressman Robert Matsui (D-CA), a member of the House Democratic Leadership who plays a key role in shaping the democratic agenda on tax, trade and health care issues for the House of Representatives. Congressman Matsui is one of the longest serving members of the House Ways and Means Committee, ranking third after Congressmen Rangel (D-NY) and Stark (D-CA) on the Democratic side. Ways and Means is the committee with jurisdiction over any tax legislation that would incorporate our runaway production provision. This was the first meeting between the creative community and the Congressman, who was accompanied by his wife Doris Matsui, a former Clinton Administration official.

DGA Third Vice President and Leadership Council Co-chair Paris Barclay opened the dialogue and thanked the Congressman for his ongoing support of DGA legislative efforts. "With so many issues in discussion in Washington that we're concerned about, the timing of this really couldn't be better ... Our supporters have created effective legislation that we think will help level the playing field. The advice from you on what we can do to push that ball forward is very helpful to us."

Matsui was one of the first members of Congress to join on our runaway production legislation both in 2001 and 2003. Because of his role on the Ways and Means Committee, his support carried particular significance. With his extensive knowledge of how tax legislation (in this case what are called the FSC/ETI bills) will move through Congress this year, he briefed the Leadership Council on the legislation's status in both the House and Senate.

"The Senate has a bill with your provision in it. It could move any time if there are some compromises made on extraneous issues," he said. "On the House side, the bill is not moving at this time. But something has to happen before we adjourn in late September, so my belief is that you should keep the pressure on, as you're doing now, and even expand it should it become necessary."

On the issue of piracy, Matsui stressed that implementation is a key concern of his. "It (piracy) is a hard one to solve because it's a question not only of setting up law, but also of actual enforcement. Enforcement is extremely difficult. We probably don't have an answer to this yet."

The Congressman was sympathetic to the efforts of independent directors to deal with the lack of opportunities because of growing media consolidation in our industry. "Concentration is a huge issue for those of you who are independent directors and make independent films or television programs," he said. He expressed concern about the fact that the public does not know, when they watch TV screens, who owns and controls the content they are watching. He said, "I think this is an issue that's developing and growing, and becoming more serious. It's my belief, based on my 25 years in Congress, that government has a major role to play here. It is our responsibility to protect those who do not have a voice — from the public to directors and other creative talent."

The Congressman ended by stressing the important role our industry plays in Washington. "The motion picture industry is one of the most critical in our country. You have recorded history, you have given the world a picture of our country ... and you are an industry that produces great talent and generates great economic revenue for the United States. For all those reasons your industry must keep a strong voice in D.C."