From Mallegni (FI) a bill for art: 100 percent deductions for those who buy works and finance exhibitions, census of deposits

100 percent deductions for those who buy works of art, the tax credit of theArt Bonus also raised to 100 percent, and also full deductions for those who finance exhibition organizers, exemptions for employers who invest in art and culture, facilities for restoration companies, a fund for young artists, a census of deposits (but also free consultations by art historians to local authorities): this is the recipe that Senator Massimo Mallegni(Forza Italia) proposes, in a bill of his own initiative, to foster art.

The bill, titled Dispositions for the diffusion of Italian culture and art and facilities in favor of artistic and artisanal enterprises, will soon be presented in Parliament and, as the text states, “intends not only to bring to the attention of the Assembly the promotion and enhancement of culture, contemporary art and craftsmanship, but also aims to defend and enhance the manufacturing sector of our country.” In Italy, Mallegni argues, “the cultural sector represents a real investment because it can yield results far beyond the size of the outlays and benefit the country as a whole, not only in terms of image, but also in terms of specific and concrete economic interests. The extraordinary cultural heritage and intellectual potential that Italy can afford to project to the world become a privileged instrument of foreign policy, not only because of the irreplaceable value of cultural exchange as a vehicle for contact and dialogue, but also, and above all, because of the far-reaching repercussions on the political-economic level.” Therefore, according to the senator, “today there is a need for culture, art and craftsmanship to assume increasing importance in the political debate: the action of promotion and their dissemination need targeted strategic support.”

The measures, for Mallegni, should support both ancient and contemporary art: “if as far as the art of the past is concerned,” the text continues, “the policy of preservation and usability is central, for contemporary art the policy to be privileged is the fiscal one. In fact, the error of fiscal legislation with respect to this sector lies in considering already culturally and economically established those individuals who, on the contrary, are at the beginning of their artistic careers, a beginning that is characterized by difficulties in obtaining the necessary funding to develop creative ideas.” From these needs the idea of a bill that should “not only boost employment, but also promote and enhance that cultural and economic heritage that Italian craftsmanship represents in the world. For this reason, it is important to think effective lines of action for the promotion of young art, so as to dispel the old stereotypes of individual European countries, and develop a new image that is in step with the times, to unite diversity within a broader project of integration wide, thanks to a common action; in fact, only with a structural and targeted action will it be possible to achieve the result of introducing artistic production within the international circuits, appropriately focusing attention on it.”

There are thirteen articles of which the Mallegni bill is composed. The first three intervene on the spending limits of local authorities in the sphere of culture to allow a wider scope of action for the public administrations concerned, while from the fourth onward they go into specifics: Article 4 establishes a “Fund for the training of young artists and artisans, with an endowment of 10 million euros annually as of the year 2019, intended for the disbursement of scholarships, lasting from twelve to thirty-six months, to young Italians under the age of thirty-five for the performance of studies or research, at legally recognized national institutes, upon presentation of the study or research project by the candidate.” Article five increases the Art Bonus tax credit from the current 65 percent to 100 percent, and Article 6 establishes 100 percent deductions for those who purchase works of art. 100% deductibility also in Article 7, in this case reserved for those who purchase art objects and those who finance exhibitions. Article 8 introduces facilities to “promote the employment of young artists and artisans”: it states that “employers operating in art, culture, artistic handicrafts, restoration and design, who hire workers who have not attained the age of thirty-five years [....], is granted, for a maximum period of 6 years, exemption from the payment of the total social security contributions to be paid by the employer, with the inclusion of premiums and contributions due to the National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work.” Same exemption also for workers who convert the contracts of young workers in the sector to permanent contracts. And again, eight-year exemption from IRAP and corporate income tax for companies that hire young artists under the age of 35. Finally, 100 percent deductibility for businesses that “invest in art and culture through artistic events or exhibitions of works of art.”

Article 9 proposes subsidized tax regimes for enterprises “that make, or contribute in an essential way to making, artifacts of marble, bronze and various metals, mosaic, ceramics and restoration, those engaged in the processing and transformation of the stone sector that takes place in the quarry or in workshops and sawmills outside the quarry, foundries and artistic workshops of ceramics and mosaics,” and proposes that the state adopt “appropriate initiatives for the preservation of marble quarries and the development and dissemination of the crafts, in cooperation with the regions and local authorities concerned, as well as, if necessary, in connection with similar initiatives activated in the European Union.” Article 10 establishes a “Fund for the support, development and preservation of artistic craft enterprises in marble, bronze and ceramics, mosaics and restoration with an endowment of 30 million euros from the year 2020,” while Article 11 reinstates the art institutes replaced by the licei artistici by the Gelmini reform. Lastly, Article 12 establishes “Residential Study Centers” for the purpose of training young nonresident artists and artisans, and Article 13 requires regions and municipalities to carry out, on an annual basis, “a mapping and census of museum deposits for the cataloguing, conservation, and restoration of cultural assets present for study and research purposes, transmitting copies to the relevant regional offices,” and requires that consultation of objects not on display must still be guaranteed. For the census of the repositories, the bill proposes that the entities concerned may “avail themselves, free of charge, of the advice of art historians or professionally qualified figures.” And again, for this census, the ddl proposes to endow the MiBAC with a fund of 30 million euros from the year 2020.

In the photo, Senator Massimo Mallegni.

From Mallegni (FI) a bill for art: 100 percent deductions for those who buy works and finance exhibitions, census of deposits

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