Florida Governor Ron DeSantis steps up his battle with Disney and will direct legislators to discuss the termination of Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District

Apr 19, 2022 in "The Walt Disney Company"

Posted: Tuesday April 19, 2022 10:37am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

In a press conference today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has escalated his offensive action toward Disney and has announced plans to terminate Walt Disney World's Reedy Creek Improvement District.

DeSantis said during the press conference that the Florida state legislator will discuss this week the termination of all special districts created prior to 1968. Disney's Reedy Creek District was created in 1967 ahead of the construction of Walt Disney World.

The creation of the Reedy Creek Improvement District in 1967 allowed Disney the luxury of establishing its own independent government that handles many aspects of the Walt Disney World property, including emergency services, infrastructure, and construction permitting. It remains unclear how the elimination of Reedy Creek could actually be implemented and how Disney would respond.

Speaking in The Villages retirement community, DeSantis said, "I am announcing today that we are expanding the call of what they are going to be considering this week. And so yes, they will be considering their congressional map. But they also will be considering termination of all special districts that were enacted in Florida prior to 1968. And that includes the Reedy Creek Improvement District."

This latest move follows escalating tensions between DeSantis and Disney CEO Bob Chapek regarding Disney's opposition to Florida's "Don't Say Gay Bill."

Disney has suspended all political donations in the state of Florida in response to the bill.

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GoneViral3 minutes ago

And that somehow happened the day before they would force the involved parties in the Florida government to testify under oath. What remarkable timing!

Bullseye19674 minutes ago

It is his interpretation. Who made you in charge if it is reasonable or not? He agreed you have a difference of opinion. Not taking a side here, and I know your experience, but he is entitled to think what he wants. There are no hard cold facts in this exchange, because none of us know what happened behind the scenes. He took one take from Ronnie's statement and you took another.

GoneViral6 minutes ago

These posts are amazing satire! Well done! You take the grifter side whose ethics commissioner got busted for grifting on an ethics violation and act like they're totally clean. Then, you take the side who just opened every document and came back clean. Then, you argue that it's suspicious how clean-cut the good people are, so they must be up to something. I think you're officially ready for your Wrestlemania moment! Tell that goody-goody Codie Rhodes that you're not falling for his nice guy act!

GoneViral13 minutes ago

Yes, people are always saying that about...Ron DeSantis?! Seriously, I busted up at this.

Tom P.39 minutes ago

Disagree. But I can't to much farther without veering away from the Disney discussion and going straight into politics. Suffice it to say, I think you are wrong.

Batman'sParents51 minutes ago

This is spot on. I would also add even that absent TWDC preceeding with the suit that allows for restoration of the original legislation, this settlement is the most realistic to settle the lawsuit. The only ways that RCID gets restored is via an act of the legislature or restoration from the courts. While both shouldn't be ruled out, the first one is highly improbable and has it's own tangled web of issues and the second one, is time consuming. Working out a direct settlement that requires little legislative input with CFTOD and can offer immediate remedies to the district, state, and the TWDC was the most pragamatic path.

Chi843 hours ago

But what you’re proposing isn’t a reasonable interpretation. It’s reading way too much into “Yeah, yeah. No, I would” when asked if he would talk to Iger. The interviewer didn’t ask about or even mention the lawsuit or negotiations in his question.

WoundedDreamer3 hours ago

Yeah, but doesn't that run counter to the "he refuses to talk to Iger" narrative? And what would they talk about? It had to be over a settlement agreement. He was already willing to talk and move forward back in August of 2023. I guess it's a difference in interpretation.

Dcgc283 hours ago

Honestly it’s going to be business as usual moving forward. Florida needs Disney and Disney needs Florida. It was inevitable that it would pass in some sort. The real winners here are the state of Florida and Disney because they’re going to go back to printing money with each other. Oh and I guess the people who lean politically with Desantis. But they only win vicariously. They’re still getting robbed by the state and companies involved in the situation.

Chi843 hours ago

No. Politicians, especially ones who are lawyers, are very good at limiting their answers to only the question asked. He was asked if he had spoken with Iger and said no. He was asked if he would talk to him and he said “Yeah, yeah. No, I would” There’s reasonable no way that answer can be stretched out to become an offer to engage in settlement negotiations regarding the lawsuit. Maybe he meant he would talk to Iger to tell him there’s no way he would ever settle the lawsuit so Disney should just give up.

WoundedDreamer3 hours ago

What would Iger and DeSantis talk about other than a settlement and moving on? It does sound like an awkward phone call, though. 🤔 🤣

WoundedDreamer3 hours ago

You're not wrong about this. I do think of the RCID as having a been a vestigial organ of sorts. At the time it was important to Walt Disney World's success, but as things have evolved it became less important. That doesn't necessarily justify its removal, but I'm optimistic about Disney's ability to navigate things moving forward.

mikejs783 hours ago

No, he didn't.

Chi843 hours ago

But the words you quoted don’t support what you’re saying about him agreeing to negotiate if approached.