Well, Florida’s Republican leaders actually did it. They voted to get rid of the special government district that Disney uses to run the Walt Disney World Resort.
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Don’t throw dirt on the Reedy Creek Improvement District just yet, though. Disney has plenty of legal avenues through which to block or get around the state’s action. If it wants to, that is. It’s possible that by dissolving the district, Florida could be saving Disney millions of dollars a year that the company now pays for the roads, utilities and emergency services that local counties would have to provide in the district’s absence.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his Republican allies in the Florida Legislature have declared that the purpose of their legislation — which mentions neither Disney nor the Reedy Creek by name — was to punish Disney for its last-minute opposition to the state’s so-called “don’t say gay” education bill. DeSantis and key ally State Rep. Randy Fine have appeared on news programs criticizing Disney for trying to bring its “California values” to Florida.
As a native Californian, I take their association of our state with LGBTQ+ rights as a compliment. Of course, support for the inherent worth and dignity of all people, regardless of race, gender or sexual orientation, is a value hardly confined to Californians. Many people across the country, including millions in Florida, share these values.
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I don’t believe that DeSantis actually wants to hurt Disney. He did not go after the half-billion in tax breaks Florida is giving the company to move jobs from California. The legislation that attacks Reedy Creek also allows the district to be reformed on the same day it would be dissolved. This is just about showing Disney that DeSantis is boss in Florida.
But is he? Disney is not a popular tourist destination because of Florida. Florida is such a popular destination because of Disney. Millions of visitors come to Florida to enjoy the customer service, entertainment and attractions that Disney and its legions of imitators and competitors provide.
Florida’s leaders — and the Floridians who elect them — would do well to remember that.