Hollywood stars from Wisconsin are getting involved in the battle between lawmakers over the state’s law on film incentive tax credits.

In a letter dated March 3 and addressed to Gov. Jim Doyle and state legislators, Wisconsin native and University of Wisconsin alumna Jane Kaczmarek — known for her role as the mom on “Malcolm in the Middle” — and her husband, “West Wing” star Bradley Whitford, urged the governor not to do away with the state’s tax incentives for the film industry.

In their letter, the couple urged the governor to examine the economic effects of the tax incentives instead of just the amount of money collected by the Department of Commerce.

Green Bay native Tony Shalhoub, star of the cable show “Monk,” wrote a similar letter to the governor in favor of the tax incentives. Shalhoub recently spent three weeks shooting the independent film “Feed the Fish” in Door County.

“We injected thousands of dollars into the community during the course of filming and heard nothing from the locals but that our presence in the community was hugely stimulating, both economically and artistically,” Shalhoub wrote. “We also hired locally and were able to train many people in the hopes of establishing a solid crew base in Wisconsin.”

Current law offers tax incentives up to 25 percent of what is spent in the state by filmmakers. Although the incentives were passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Doyle just last year, the governor is now proposing a grant program that would award grants up to $500,000 per year, according to Department of Commerce spokesperson Tony Hozeny.

Doyle’s grant plan was included as part of his budget proposal introduced last month.

Since the tax incentives went into place, nine movies — including “Public Enemies,” starring Johnny Depp — have been filmed in Wisconsin.

Although the governor wants to end the tax incentives, Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton has supported the credits and is working with legislators to keep them in the state, spokesperson Ben Nuckels said.

“These tax incentives have drawn millions into the state. The responsible thing for us to do is improve them,” Nuckels said.

Rep. Tamara Grigsby, D-Milwaukee, recently introduced a proposal to the Joint Committee on Finance as part of an effort to improve the incentives and offer an alternative to the governor’s budget proposal. Lawton supports the representative’s plan, according to Nuckels.

The plan would close a loophole that allows non-Wisconsin employees to receive a larger tax credit than Wisconsin employees, reward companies that employ Wisconsin residents and require 35 percent of the film to be shot in Wisconsin in order to receive tax credits, among other provisions.

“The proposal has three intended consequences: drawing revenue into the state, creating jobs and developing creative industries that would create the opportunity for more economic growth in Wisconsin,” Grigsby spokesperson Kevin Benish said.

Doyle’s office could not be reached for comment.