Disney government dissolution bill signed by DeSantis

[demmiblue]

Source: The Hill

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed a bill to dissolve Walt Disney World’s private government, after the entertainment giant opposed a new state law critics have dubbed “Don’t Say Gay.”

The law would eliminate the Reedy Creek Improvement District, as the 55-year-old Disney government is known, as well as a handful of other similar districts by June 2023. The measure does allow for the districts to be reestablished, leaving an avenue to renegotiate its future.

The move could have huge tax implications for Disney, whose series of theme parks have transformed Orlando into one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations, and serves to further sour the relationship between the Republican-led government and a major political player in the state.

For DeSantis, the attack on Disney is his latest salvo in a culture war waged over policies involving race, gender and the coronavirus, battles that have made him one of the most popular GOP politicians in the country and a likely 2024 presidential candidate.

Read more: https://thehill.com/news/ap/ap-business/disney-government-dissolution-bill-signed-by-desantis/

[Ray Bruns]

1. My money is on the mouse.

[Cha]

26. I Hope so!

💙💛

[Rebl2]

12. My thought too

[area51]

35. +1 n/t

[royable]

3. How bout if Disney dissolves the DeSantis admin? n/t

[PA_jen]

4. How soon do we see the State from Disney stating they are leaving FL followed by FL realization how

money they are about to lose and back track?

[jmowreader]

7. I don't think Disney will pull its park out of Florida

It makes too much sense for the parks to be there - weather being a prime one - but any filmed entertainment they make won’t be made in Florida, and there’s a lot of that.

However…from what I know Disney has been funding a lot of infrastructure around the parks that they no longer will, and Disney has been paying a lot of taxes that no longer can be collected.

I think DeSantis just destroyed his political career. “Ron DeSantis doubled my property taxes because Disney exercised its freedom of speech” is going to be impossible for any politician, ESPECIALLY a Republican, to overcome.

[Rebl2]

13. I thought

I saw this on one of the network news programs this morning that it will increase property taxes for many people in Orlando because, like you say, Disney funds a lot of the infrastructure around there. Don’t think folks will be to happy about that.

[former9thward]

37. Disney will still fund it.

The County will tax Disney for it.

[Gore1FL]

23. Raising taxes to engage in an anti-lgbtq+ culture war they have long lost is idiotic.

They GOP is running out of "others" to scapegoat.

[Pacifist Patriot]

5. There's a saying in Florida...at least in Central Florida.

Never fuck with The Mouse.

I'm not kidding.

[moniss]

22. True enough and

when you get down around FM etc. they don't say mouse they say rat.

[Pacifist Patriot]

40. True too!!

[bluescribbler]

6. I am of two minds about this.

On the one hand, I applaud the Disney Organization for their stand against this stupid and hateful law. I wish other Florida businesses would do the same.

On the other hand, I remain uncomfortable with the idea that any private business acting as a government. I fear that can become a slippery slope into fascism.
Don't expect to see me at either Disneyland, or at Disney World. Nor should you expect to see me in Florida. Thanks, but no thanks.

[Prof. Toru Tanaka]

31. Our family went to DisneyWorld in the 1970s.

I remember the Presidential exhibit but all I basically remember otherwise was standing in LONG lines to get on the rides.

I have no desire to ever return.

[Flaleftist]

32. They do have limitations on what they can do.

It's not like they can make laws and put people in jail. And as I understand, Disney is not the only entity with such an arrangement.

[PatSeg]

43. Yes, I agree with you entirely

I am no fan of Disney as a company and their acting as their own government is very disturbing, but I support them in opposition to DeSantis's fascist government. I think the governor has taken on a fight he cannot win. It should be fun to watch.

[RobinA]

54. Even If

he were to "win," which I doubt, what does he actually win?

[PatSeg]

55. Great question

The man who went after Mickey Mouse and won? Not exactly a great legacy for a politician. It might even be included in his obituary some day.

[pecosbob]

8. Hey, Florida Man...your governor just left you holding a billion dollar debt.

[GB_RN]

9. From What I Understand, This Move Isn't Even Legal...

The original legislation states that the zone can only be dissolved by the owners of the property, which is the board of Disney (as long as they are employed by Disney). Unless Disney dissolves it, then the zone still exists.

Expect Disney to sue the hell out of DeathSentence (and/or the Florida legislature).

[PatSeg]

44. Yes and I'm sure

that Disney has much better lawyers than the government of Florida. DeSantis has messed with the wrong mouse. You can't govern like a vindictive Trump and survive.

[GB_RN]

46. Governor Jared Polis (D-CO) Labeled Gov. DeathSentence As...

An "authoritarian socialist", in a nod to certain Latin American and other "leftist" dictators. Not that I'm telling you anything new, but lots of people in this country have been deliberately misled by the GOPQ to conflate socialism with dictatorships that happen to use the word socialism in the country name. Reminding these groups that DeathSentence is acting like Hugo Chavez, Nicolas Maduro, Castro, the Kim family, et al., we might actually educate some people about which party is the party of fascists and dictators. Time will tell, but this has real potential for us to be a winning message.

[PatSeg]

48. I hope so

Having Disney on our side could really help. I'm sure Disney would have no problem destroying the governor. It's not that Disney is ideological, they are about profit and DeSantis has gotten in their way.

[Mawspam2]

10. Welcome you to Cuba - el Presidente Fidel DeSantis

[bluestarone]

11. I'm sure i'm wrong BUT

I believe these two are just huffing and puffing. They will work something out here, because of possible lawsuits!

[Ford_Prefect]

33. DeSantis seems immune to the idea he or FL could be sued and lose. He's the Grand Imperial Wizard

of the MAGA Dynasty. I don't think anyone in Tallahassee thought this through at all for larger cultural repercussions, or financial and legal blowback. They wanted a grandstand play on camera to seal the nomination and control of the party. This is right up there with Putin invading Ukraine on the list of obviously deranged self-inflicted damage.

GB_RN Referenced this from Electoral Vote (below) https://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2022/Senate/Maps/Apr22.html#item-1

DeSantis is playing with fire here, however, for a number of reasons. Here are three big ones:

Legal exposure: Disney has a number of causes of action, should they decide to take this to court. And as you may know, Disney heads to court at the drop of a hat. If you so much as sneeze in Donald Duck's direction, they're serving you with a subpoena. Most obviously, they are pretty clearly being discriminated against. Further, the procedure by which this bill was passed was highly irregular, without debate or discussion (or the participation of most Democrats in the Florida legislature). Finally, the charter that created the RCID gives sole power to dissolve it to the RCID's landowners (all of them Disney executives, who are "ex officio" owners of big parcels of Orlando land as long as they keep their jobs).

Financial exposure: On the other hand, if the RCID is dissolved, then the governmental functions being performed by Disney would have to be assumed by the state and municipal governments. And while DeSantis is kinda fascist, so too is Disney, at least in some ways. In particular, you remember that whole bit about how, under Mussolini, "the trains always ran on time" in Italy? Well, Disney is really, really good at managing employees and infrastructure. They have their portion of Orlando running like a finely-tuned machine, with stellar roads, an almost sickening level of cleanliness, and well-trained and generally satisfied employees. If Florida authorities take over all of that, they wouldn't be able to do it as well, or as cost effectively. So, they'd probably have to raise taxes on Florida citizenry. Oh, and Disney is also servicing $2 billion in public improvement bonds, which Florida would inherit, meaning more taxes. Raising taxes on state residents is a curious way to "own the libs."

Angry Disney: Right now, Disney is playing ball and is saying nothing. But Iger & Co. are spitting mad, and are not going to take this lying down. There are the possible lawsuits, of course. Beyond that, the Disney Corporation just announced its intent to move 2,000 jobs to Orlando. Don't bet on that happening now. Disney's cruise line is also based in Florida, but that could change. And even the relocation of Disney World itself could plausibly be on the table. True, it's not easy to pack up Space Mountain and move it elsewhere, but it's not impossible. The theme parks are ultimately a fairly small part of Disney's portfolio these days, and it wouldn't kill the company to shut Disney World down for a year or two while they build a replacement in some other state. Perhaps a state that offers some sweet, sweet subsidies to relocate. Gov. Jared Polis (D-CO), for example, has been making overtures. And as many travelers know, Denver has a massive and fairly new airport, and all kinds of open space.

[SouthernDem4ever]

34. I will never visit Florida again

not that they give 2 shits.

[Auggie]

14. Could/would/should Disney align with other corporations to overthrow DeSantis?

[UGADawg]

15. Don't oppose Ron DePutin

Trump like revenge.

[twodogsbarking]

16. He doesn't get his way on one thing and seeks revenge.

Just like TFG

[The Mouth]

17. Disney is not a good actor

They have utterly screwed up the copyright law in this country almost single-handedly.

I mean Fuck Desantis, but I loathe the mouse, too.

[sir pball]

53. The Soviet Union wasn't a good actor either, but we sure as shit needed them in WWII. nt

[world wide wally]

18. Disney should televise the signing of their moving plans on TV

[bucolic_frolic]

19. Amazed how fast this went through & couldn't similar legislation dissolve gated communities?

I don't know why they would do that, but the GOP can usually find a reason

[GB_RN]

20. Here's A Link With Analysis On The Situation

Courtesy of the guys at Electoral-Vote.com. They go into why legally, this issue is a big problem for Governor DeathSentence.

[Cha]

29. Wow.. TY

💙💛

[GB_RN]

30. Sure Thing!

Happy to pass it along.

[packman]

21. Disney has a lot of land just across the state border in Georgia

Jut sayin'

[Submariner]

24. Disney should terminate ALL state employees park discounts

and any line cutting privileges reserved for Florida politicians, eliminate political contributions to republicans, and move Disney Executive staff back to California.

[former9thward]

38. The Disney Executive staff is not moving.

They pay no income tax in FL. The same can't be said about CA.

[edhopper]

25. Too bad their CEO

is a Republican who supports DeSantis.

[Marcuse]

36. Family trumps party (sometimes).

Charlee Corra, a member of the Disney family, came out publicly as transgender and condemned anti-LGBTQ bills in a recent interview.

Corra, who uses "he" and "they" pronouns, announced that their family would match up to $250,000 in donations to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ advocacy group, during the organization's annual gala in Los Angeles last month.

Roy P. Disney, Corra's stepfather and the grandson of Roy O. Disney, a co-founder of The Walt Disney Company, upped that amount to $500,000 last week.
[link:https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/disney-heir-comes-publicly-transgender-condemns-anti-lgbtq-bills-rcna23888|

“Equality matters deeply to us,” Disney said in a statement, according to the Los Angeles Times, “especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.”

[edhopper]

45. The Disney family

owns less than 3% of the company and has no control over it's operation.

[Marcuse]

49. How unfortunate.

[edhopper]

50. Yerah

the new CEO is a real Repug asshole.

[Evolve Dammit]

27. Death Sentence is another Sociopath. Where do they originate? 45's Mom: "What kind of monster have

I created?"

[usonian]

28. California here we come (back) DISCLAIMER: only half snark

Seriously, your employees won't be prosecuted for Crimes Against Sharia law (or the local equivalent).
Science is taught and practiced WITHOUT being censored for conformance with the Bible or KKK "guidelines".
No mosquitos in most of the state.
(the few are genetically modified)

No alligators, crocodiles
No hurricanes
It only rains in winter (if at all)
In winter, there is snow skiing not far from the central valley.
AND surfing (you can do both in the same day at times)
RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA IS LEGAL ((Are you convinced yet)
Wineries nearby (don't trust that Florida wine)
There are beautiful mountains exceeding 100 feet in height.
All of this is close to .... well .... Disney, and
NO MAR AL LARDO.

Just locate away from wooded areas, and collect rainwater in the winter.

and much love to (blue) Floridian friends. We made a few mistakes here, but sent them packing (to Washington) So who's perfect?

[rpannier]

39. Just saved Disney 1-2 billion a year

Yep that showed 'em
And the cost will now become the burden of local taxpayers

[BlueWavePsych]

41. Kick

[lark]

42. Damn, I so hope Disney moves out of FL.

It will serve those Orange Cnty Repugs right to lose their major source of income and the people will all blame the repugs. Good job there Death Sentence, now he's killing jobs as well as the people that fill them - again, just for reasons of their toxic and rw malicious hate.

[GB_RN]

47. The Year Round Favorable Weather Is What Keeps Them In Florida...

Other than that, only California, where they already have Disney Land, there's not a good option. Arizona and Nevada are too damned hot for half the year, and running out of water. Everywhere else and you shut down for the Winter, so you lose out on six months of income - but Six Flags in multiple states, Carowinds in NC, and Kings Dominion, Water Country USA and Busch Gardens in VA manage it. 🤷‍♂️

I just see them suing the hell out of DeathSentence over this. Of course, win or lose, the tax payers of Florida are stuck with the bill: Either the bills for the newly tax-payer owned area that is Disney, or the legal bills from DeathSentence losing the lawsuit.

He's such a fucking shithead.

[SuperCoder]

51. We don't have to obey laws from Deathsantis

Especially unconstitutional ones. Disney could just say that.

[Wolf Frankula]

52. DeSantis is going to learn what others have learned.

You DO NOT mess with the Mouse.

Wolf