The Power of Creatives: A Conversation with U.S. Rep. Judy Chu

The President’s Task Force on Education, Outreach & Engagement hosted a special conversation with U.S. Representative Judy Chu, D-California, on Aug. 11. Chu, a long-time advocate of the creative industry, is co-chair of the Congressional Creative Rights Caucus, a bipartisan collective that focuses on the economic contributions of content creators. Since its inception, the caucus has worked to bring lawmakers and labor union leaders together on important issues concerning the entertainment industry and has advocated for many of SAG-AFTRA’s initiatives.

Chu’s interview with SAG-AFTRA President Gabrielle Carteris centered on legislative efforts to provide economic relief for performers affected by the COVID-19 crisis. One piece of legislation is the Mixed Earner Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Act, which would correct a flaw in the CARES Act that harms mixed earners, workers who report W-2 and 1099 income such as actors, singers and musicians or any seasonal worker. Other topics included passing the Performing Artist Tax Parity Act of 2019, which, if passed, would update the Qualified Performing Artist deduction by raising the income ceiling from $16,000 to $100,000 for qualified middle-class performers, and combating the proliferation of pirated works and “deepfakes.”

Throughout the hour-long discussion, Chu addressed concerns and noted the necessity of members actively engaging with their representatives.

“You have members that live all over the United States [and] if they can contact their member of Congress or their senator, then that would go a long way,” said Chu. “We need that kind of reach; we need more of these members of Congress to hear from everyone.”

To watch the full conversation, scroll below, and be sure to visit youtube.com/sagaftra for other PTEOE events.