A tax break prized by the film industry got a push Tuesday in Congress.

Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., urged the new chairman of the Senate Finance Committee to reinstate the federal tax credit for filmmakers that expired at the end of the year with dozens of other deductions and credits targeted to specific industries or groups of taxpayers.

“I have heard from a number of small production studios that are having trouble securing capital from investors due to uncertainty over the availability of this credit,” Titus said in a letter to Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

Wyden has said one of his priorities is to renew more than 50 expired tax breaks bundled in a “tax extender bill.” Among them are deductions for state and local sales taxes and write-offs for forgiven mortgage debt sought by property owners seeking relief from troubled home loans.

The federal film subsidy is worth up to $15 million for a production and up to $20 million for films produced in economically disadvantaged areas.

It is prized by production companies able to use it to attract investors to their projects.

Titus, who was an advocate for film industry incentives while serving in the Nevada Senate, introduced a bill in October to extend the federal tax break for two years.

She said the $20 million tax credit program authorized last year by the Nevada Legislature has spurred significant interest among production companies.

The state tax break coupled with the federal subsidy would make Nevada “an attractive option for the film industry while diversifying our state’s economy,” she said.