Apr 28, 2022 - News

Disney tells investors that Florida is out of line

Ben Montgomery

Traffic at Disney World — A Mickey pylon electric power pole used by Reedy Creek Energy Services. Photo: Paul Hennessy/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Walt Disney World isn't too worried that it’s a target of Republican scorn for criticizing Florida’s “Parental Rights in Education” law, dubbed by critics “Don’t Say Gay” and aimed at stifling talk about gender and sexuality in public elementary schools.

Driving the news: After Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed a bill to dissolve Disney's private government, the company posted a statement reminding investors of an obscure provision in Florida's 1967 Reedy Creek Improvement District law that bars the state from doing what it did.

The statement refers to the state's "pledge" to "not limit or alter the rights of the District … until all such bonds together with interest … are fully met and discharged."

What it means: The district carries some $1 billion in bond debt. Orange and Osceola counties would have to absorb that, which would lead to a huge tax spike for those residents.

County officials are blasting the legislature's move.
And the officials who run Disney's private government are confused about what it all means.

Of note: Universal Studios and SeaWorld enjoy more tax breaks than Disney, per the Tampa Bay Times.

Add Axios on Google

Disney tells investors that Florida is out of line

More Tampa Bay stories