Issue: With jobs declining in the Los Angeles film and television industry, mayoral candidates have been pressed to offer fixes to limit production from moving to cities outside of California with cheaper filing costs. Industry leaders will likely donate more than $1 million directly to candidates in this election cycle.

Eric Garcetti's solution: He wants to eliminate city fees charged to film pilot episodes. If the pilot is picked up for a full season, filming fees would be waived for the first season. The city council could adopt the policy as early as next week.

But city budget analysts said the fees, which totaled just $231,000 last year, are "infinitesimal" compared to overall production costs of $262 million. Thus, the effect would be minimal unless the city could convince other departments and government agencies to also eliminate the fees they charge.

Saving a nickel would then become more like saving a dime. The number of pilots filmed in L.A. has increased each year since 2008.

Wendy Greuel's solution: She hasn't offered a specific proposal, but she has championed expanding film tax credits at the state level. After a recent mayoral debate, the state Film Commission member said that eliminating the city's gross receipts would help the film industry in general by lessening the tax burden of companies downstream in the industry.

"We have to focus in on the industries we want to keep. We have to decide what jobs we want to go after," she said. "Entertainment is our signature industry in L.A. and California."

Greuel's also pushed for more connections between local colleges and universities and the L.A. employers.

"We recruit students to our schools everyday but we never recruit them to stay in Los Angeles," she said during a recent debate.

An official at the USC School of Cinematic Arts said the school doesn't keep records about graduates, such as how many of them stay in Los Angeles.

Kevin James' solution: He has proposed creating a "Permit Center" modeled on a program at the City of Dallas to speed up the process for production companies. James also wants to put union filming crews to work on independent productions by matching them up through an online database. That proposal and James' candidacy have the backing of the Bring Hollywood Home Foundation, a social-welfare nonprofit that's raised eyebrows in Hollywood for soliciting big donations.

Foundation leader Sharon Jimenez said she learned of James from actors and producers who had heard him speak at an event in Calabassas. She invited all the candidates to participate in forum in December focused on the film industry. But only James would agree to the debate. After sitting down with James, the group endorsed him. Jimenez said she hopes all the candidates get more serious about protecting the film industry as a result.

"I know their watching us and hearing our voices," she said.

Part of her motivation has been her two children. They graduated from USC and entered an entertainment industry with few job opportunities.

"If you don't care that the industry leaves, then vote for any of the other candidates," she said.

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