Culture
Florida Gov. DeSantis Signs Bill, Places Disney District Under State Control
For those who remember the Thrilla in Manila, heavyweight political champion, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has scored a TKO against the increasingly woke Disney corporation.
Gov. DeSantis signed a bill Monday that placed Disney’s decade-old special tax district under state control.
The Republican super majority passed the bill that re-classifies Disney’s self-governed Reedy Creek Improvement District to the “Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.”
DeSantis also appointed a five-person oversight board for the special district — a power formerly held by Disney
I signed legislation to end Disney’s self-governing status, placed the area in state receivership, and appointed 5 members to a state control board.
Disney no longer has its own government, will live under the same laws as everyone else and pay its debts and fair share of taxes. pic.twitter.com/5JnZmEjSdv
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) February 27, 2023
“Today the corporate kingdom finally comes to an end,” DeSantis said at the bill-signing ceremony. “There’s a new sheriff in town, and accountability will be the order of the day.”
The Magic Kingdom will be now required to comply with state regulations within the district. The final bill keeps the district intact after DeSantis and other Republican officials had initially called for it to be dissolved entirely.
The bill-signing ends a months-long feud between DeSantis and Disney after the company and its former CEO Bob Chapek publicly lobbied against Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, branded by critics as “Don’t Say Gay”, which bars teachers in the state from discussing gender identity or sexual orientation with students below fourth grade.
The overhaul cost Disney control over a district it had effectively controlled as a state-within-a-state for decades.
Under the old arrangement, Disney had the ability to levy taxes, issue bonds, exert control over public services such as police and fire departments and even build its own nuclear power plant within the district if it wanted.
The bill left the district’s debt obligations and other financial structures intact. DeSantis vowed at a press conference earlier this month that the changes would not result in any additional tax burden for Floridians.
“Disney’s going to pay its fair share of taxes and Disney’s going to honor the debt and that’s exactly what this proposed piece of legislation will do,” DeSantis said.
The changes to its special tax district mark another setback for Disney which recently announced a major cost-cutting plan that included 7,000 layoffs.
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