Florida Senate passes a bill to dissolve Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District

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Posted: Wednesday April 20, 2022 2:54pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

The Florida Senate voted 23-16 to pass a bill to dissolve Disney's Reedy Creek Improvement District as Governor Ron DeSantis continues to seek revenge on Disney for opposing his "Don't Say Gay Bill."

The next step for the bill is to go before a vote in the state House.

If it ultimately passes, the Reedy Creek Improvement District will be dissolved on June 1 2023.

The creation of the Reedy Creek Improvement District in 1967 allowed Disney the luxury of establishing its own independent government that handles many aspects of the Walt Disney World property, including emergency services, infrastructure, and construction permitting. It remains unclear how the elimination of Reedy Creek could actually be implemented and how Disney would respond.

In a second vote, the Senate also passed a measure to remove the protection that Disney has regarding tech firm censorship.

These latest moves follow escalating tensions between DeSantis and Disney CEO Bob Chapek regarding Disney's opposition to Florida's "Don't Say Gay Bill."

Disney has suspended all political donations in the state of Florida in response to the bill.

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peter114351 hour ago

No. But it’s the start of the process

MR.Dis1 hour ago

Does this mean a new agreement has been reached with Disney? I am trying to read between the lines on just what this is saying.

flyakite3 hours ago

castlecake2.012 days ago

Yes

Stripes12 days ago

Has Disney/CFTOD continued to replace the purple direction signage with the new blue color scheme since CFTOD took over?

mkt13 days ago

You're right. The new document will be different. It will be "different" in the way that Chris Gaines was "different" from Garth Brooks or how the drummer from Nirvana is "different" from the singer of the Foo Fighters.

Unbanshee13 days ago

Both are effectively picked by the Governor, just not technically. Look no further than the communications "strategy" with the replacement of Gilzean of the Governor's office getting out ahead of every single step of the process

lazyboy97o13 days ago

The settlement acknowledged the “need” to change the comprehensive plan, which undermines this idea. So too does the lack of an agreement, as the 2032 Comprehensive Plan wasn’t that different than the again in force 2020 Comprehensive Plan.

Brian13 days ago

That's understandable for sure. I just felt inclined to make the distinction due to the ongoing conversation, as the district administrator is selected by the board, while the board is selected by the governor.

mkt13 days ago

The new agreement will be functionally the same as the one Disney was sued over.

pdude8113 days ago

You're right. This has been going on so long I just lumped all the antagonists together.

Brian13 days ago

Not to nitpick, but Gilzean was district administrator, not a board member.

pdude8113 days ago

A bigger risk than keeping Garcia and Gilzean on the board as active disruptors? I don't agree with their decision to stall the federal lawsuit, but I understand why they saw the status quo as a risk to growth over the next few years.