The Florida House of Representatives on Thursday gave final approval to a bill dissolving Walt Disney World private governmentgiving Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis a victory in his feud with the entertainment giant over his opposition to a measure critics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” law.
The move could have major fiscal implications for Disney, whose theme park series has made Orlando one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, and further aggravates the relationship between the Republican-led government and a major political actor of the state.
For DeSantis, the attack on Disney is his last salvo in a cultural war waged by policies such as race, gender and coronavirus, battles that have made him one of the most popular Republican politicians in the country and a likely 2024 presidential candidate.
The dispute with Disney involves the criticism of the company to a new law banning instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade, as well as instruction that is not “appropriate for age or development.”
In March, Disney said it would suspend political donations to the state and added that it would in turn support organizations working to oppose the new law. DeSantis and his fellow Republicans then attacked Disney and have defended the law as reasonable.
“Disney and other awakened corporations will no longer go on sale with their uncontrolled pressure campaigns,” DeSantis wrote in a fundraising presentation Wednesday. “If we want the Democratic machine and its corporate fake dogs to be held accountable, we need to be united now.”
The bill passed by the legislature on Thursday would eliminate the Reedy Creek Improvement District, as known to the Disney government, as well as a handful of other similar districts by June 2023. The measure allows the districts to be restored, leaving a avenue. to renegotiate their future. He is now moving to the DeSantis office to be signed into law.
Democrats have criticized the proposal as clear retaliation against the company and have warned that homeowners could be hit with large tax bills if they are to absorb Disney’s bond debt, although those details are far from clear. clear.
Disney is one of the largest private employers in Florida, last year it said it had more than 60,000 employees in the state. It is not immediately clear how the company or local governments around its properties would be affected if the district were dissolved.
The creation of the Reedy Creek Improvement District and the control it gave Disney over 27,000 acres (11,000 acres) in Florida was a crucial element in the company’s plans to build near Orlando in the 1960s. of the company said they needed autonomy to plan a futuristic city along with the theme park. The city never materialized, however; instead, it was transformed into the Epcot theme park.
- In:
- Law “Don’t say gay.”
- Disney
- Ron DeSantis
- Florida
Add Comment