This past Monday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a new bill that stripped Walt Disney World’s self-governing district and is now under the state’s control.
This has been a major blow to Disney which has had the Reedy Creek District under its control for the past 55 years. The district was first formed back in 1967 which allowed Disney to have certain privileges and less government interference according to Wall Street Journal.
The bill named House Bill (HB) 9-B was signed at a ceremony conducted in Lake Buena Vista where Gov. DeSantis announced, “Today the corporate kingdom finally comes to an end. There’s a new sheriff in town, and accountability will be the order of the day.”
Critics of this action have called it a punishment by DeSantis toward Disney after the company’s CEO Bob Chapek publicly supported appealing a bill the governor signed last year called the Parental Rights in Education bill or as it’s been called by critics Don’t Say Gay bill.
Reactions to this new change have been mixed. Politicians including former Vice President Mike Pence said the action was taking it too far.
“Going after their taxing authority … that was beyond the scope of what I, as a conservative limited government Republican would be prepared to do.”
Some who were at the ceremony spoke after the signing giving support to DeSantis’s signing of 9-B. These speakers were a parent criticizing Disney’s choice to disagree with the state’s education bill and a former Disney employee pointing out how the company implemented its policies on vaccinations.
On Twitter, the signing of the bill has caused major debates among users over whether this was a good idea or not.
Some like Sean Evans tweeted that this is not a good idea as in his words, “This revenge legislation will cost the state at least $2 billion and raise taxes on everyone in Orlando. Disney will benefit because they no longer have to maintain the roads or the 25k acres of land. The state does.”
Others like Richard Giroux have shown support for him stating, “When was it ever appropriate for a private company to exercise the power of a local government? Were other theme parks in Florida afforded the same privilege?”
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