Florida lawmakers kicked off a two-week particular legislative session immediately (February 6, 2023) aimed toward introducing a wide range of payments, together with one which particulars how Governor Ron DeSantis and the State of Florida plan to take management of Reedy Creek Enchancment District (RCID), which provides Walt Disney World its personal authorities.
At this time’s invoice is just the most recent growth in an ongoing saga. If you wish to be rapidly introduced on top of things on the saga from this spring, please learn our prior submit: Florida Passes Payments to Dissolve Reedy Creek Enchancment District. That covers what led to this invoice, when the dissolution would take impact, and the way it might affect Walt Disney World visitors.
Since then, there have been extra developments with the firing of former CEO Bob Chapek, who instigated the RCID dissolution within the first place. The return of CEO Bob Iger led some, together with lawmakers who had launched the unique dissolution invoice, to claim that it was unlikely the Reedy Creek Enchancment District would really go away. As earlier than, I’ll try to interrupt this down in an easy method, freed from hyperbole and sensationalism…
For starters, you’ll be able to learn Home Invoice 9B – Reedy Creek Enchancment District, Orange and Osceola Counties for your self. Truthful warning: the complete textual content of HB 9B is 189 pages lengthy; like many items of laws, it makes use of many phrases to say little or no.
The official goal of this laws is acknowledged as reenacting, amending & repealing chapter 67-764, Legal guidelines of Florida, regarding district; supplies for continuation of authority for income assortment & powers to fulfill excellent obligations; renames district; supplies boundaries; revises method of choice of board of supervisors; supplies time period limits; revises board member compensation; revises powers of board; revises powers of district; supplies for transition; supplies for continued impact of stipulation between district & Orange County; supplies exception to common legislation.
I’m not going to parse each sentence in your entire 189 web page invoice for a lot of causes, one of many largest being that this isn’t the ultimate decision. The Reedy Creek Enchancment District saga will stay ongoing, with the almost certainly consequence nonetheless being a negotiated compromise between Disney and the State of Florida.
So far as this invoice goes, some of the pertinent elements is the final sentence: “…the Reedy Creek Enchancment District is just not dissolved as of June 1, 2023, however continues in full pressure and impact beneath its new title.” That new title is the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
One of many causes for renaming slightly than dissolving and changing RCID is prone to keep away from invalidating the present district’s money owed. Tax officers and lawmakers have warned that dissolving the Reedy Creek Enchancment District threatens to shift an unlimited monetary burden to taxpayers and probably switch a $1 billion debt load to the state.
The invoice additionally states that it’s the intent of the Legislature to “protect the authority essential to generate income and pay excellent indebtedness…No bond or different instrument of indebtedness beforehand issued by the district or any district undertaking financed by bonds or different devices of indebtedness shall be affected by this act.”
The invoice additionally addresses one other level of rivalry: management over the Reedy Creek Enchancment District’s board. Pursuant to this laws, the Board of Supervisors of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District shall consist of 5 members appointed by Florida’s Governor and confirmed by the Senate.
Every member shall maintain workplace for a time period of 4 years and are required to be Florida residents, from a spread of various fields and backgrounds. Nevertheless, anybody who has had a direct or oblique relationship to a theme park or leisure enterprise (together with subcontractors and subsidiaries) within the final 3 years is ineligible. It’s not simply Disney staff–it’s extra broadly written to embody a bigger swath of Floridian’s inhabitants. Underneath this, the secretary of a lighting firm that did work for Chuck E. Cheese can be ineligible.
Presently, the Reedy Creek Enchancment District’s landowners elect its board. As a result of Walt Disney World owns nearly all the land within the district, it has been capable of hand choose board members for RCID. Which is the entire level. Reedy Creek removes pink tape, as Disney is just not topic to searching for (outdoors) native planning commissions for approval to construct new buildings. Walt Disney World can construct parks, points of interest, resorts, and different initiatives inside Reedy Creek with little-to-no (outdoors) governmental oversight. Which means Walt Disney World can keep away from the logistical hurdles of native authorities. That’s a double-edged sword, and one which additionally means Florida taxpayers are usually not footing the invoice for infrastructure at Walt Disney World.
One other space of rivalry has been the expansive powers of the Reedy Creek Enchancment District. As greatest I can inform, this is kind of left intact by the invoice (see Part 8); the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District retains most, if not all, of the identical authority to personal or enhance property; assemble or alter water administration and flood management; construct parking, roads, or recreation amenities; function hearth management amenities; function, construct, and keep transportation networks; and way more.
Notable on this entrance is subsection 15, concerning public utilities. The district shall have the authority “to personal, purchase, assemble, reconstruct, equip, function, keep, prolong, and enhance electrical energy crops, photo voltaic vitality producing programs, transmission strains and associated amenities, fuel mains and amenities of any nature…”
The verbiage right here is most likely aimed toward acquiring a political win in stopping Walt Disney World from constructing a nuclear energy plant, a proper granted to the Reedy Creek Enchancment District by Florida in 1967 that it’s unlikely to make use of. It additionally seems that the brand new district wouldn’t have the authority to construct an airport.
Aside from that, there’s not a lot right here that’s materially completely different from the present incarnation of the Reedy Creek Enchancment District. If this comes as a shock, you haven’t been paying consideration.
From my perspective, the largest deal about this invoice is that the Governor of Florida appoints all 5 members of the Board of Supervisors. There have been rumors of a compromise late final 12 months during which the governor would appoint 2 members of the board, which appeared much more believable–and possibly palatable to Disney. It’s unlikely that the identical will likely be true if that’s all members. Both a compromise continues to be to be reached, or this may very well be challenged in court docket as soon as handed.
One factor to bear in mind right here is that Governor DeSantis nearly actually has presidential aspirations, which means that he most likely won’t be the particular person making these appointments. So, an evaluation of whether or not the governor controlling the Board of Supervisors is “good” or “dangerous” ought to have completely nothing to do with partisan politics.
Past that, my commentary is basically unchanged on matter of RCID’s potential dissolution. For these questioning how it will affect Walt Disney World, I’ll level to a piece from our authentic submit discussing the dissolution of Reedy Creek Enchancment District: “Briefly, I don’t suppose it will have any materials affect on the visitor expertise at Walt Disney World. That’s as a result of I don’t suppose Reedy Creek Enchancment District will really be dissolved when all is alleged and carried out.”
Much more commentary follows, after which this: “One may argue that it is because no legislator on both facet of the aisle really believes Reedy Creek Enchancment District goes to be dissolved. Maybe they’re cynical, pondering that it’s extra about theater, a method to rating a fast ‘win’ in immediately’s period of ‘politics as group sports activities’ and the continued tradition wars. Possibly it’s a way of grabbing headlines, dominating the information cycle, and fundraising for midterms earlier than transferring on to the following outrage du jour that fuels either side’s base lengthy earlier than subsequent summer time.”
With that mentioned, it’ll be fascinating to see how CEO Bob Iger reacts. My guess–and hope–is that he doesn’t take the bait and make a public remark. He ought to perceive the political panorama in Florida for the following couple of years, and be cognizant of the implications of being embroiled on this and different controversies.
Already, Walt Disney World President Jeff Vahle has issued a press release. Or slightly, non-statement: “We’re monitoring the development of the draft laws, which is advanced given the lengthy historical past of the Reedy Creek Enchancment District. Disney works beneath a lot of completely different fashions and jurisdictions all over the world, and whatever the consequence, we stay dedicated to offering the best high quality expertise for the hundreds of thousands of visitors who go to annually.”
That is excellent. It suggests cooperation and deference, whereas committing to completely nothing. A part of Chapek’s miscalculation was approaching this with a traditional understanding of politics and energy dynamics, as knowledgeable by a long time of doing enterprise in Florida. Chapek’s entire strategy to the controversy was comedy of errors, remedying errors with much more errors, and managing to alienate actually everybody on the political spectrum within the course of.
Chapek’s dragging out of the controversy labored to Disney’s detriment, and to the good thing about politicians and commentators who’ve turned tradition wars into their entire model. Iger has a lot better political instincts and a defter contact, so this shouldn’t be an issue. If there’s going to be litigation, Iger doesn’t have to remark–and Disney doesn’t should be a celebration to it. (Simply because the phrase “Disney” doesn’t seem as soon as on this 189 web page invoice.)
Finally, my expectation stays that the Walt Disney Firm and State of Florida attain a compromise that permits everybody to “win” in earlier than the clock strikes midnight on June 1, 2023. It’ll be an consequence that permits state legislators and Governor DeSantis to assert victory, each within the ouster of Chapek and in modifying the RCID to scale back its energy and enhance oversight of the district.
The present invoice is one step nearer to that, but it surely’s most likely not fairly there from Disney’s perspective. The governor having the authority to make all appointments–and excluding these with even oblique relationships to theme parks–most likely received’t be well-received by the corporate. It’s additionally potential that Disney doesn’t care and won’t combat additional, cognizant of the truth that the state’s pursuits in selling the tourism business and growth is aligned with the businesses pursuits. All the pieces else is kind of what was anticipated: Reedy Creek Enchancment District by a brand new title, with a lot of the identical powers, minus a couple of limitations that have been seen as pink flags (however that don’t a lot matter, anyway).
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Any ideas on the substitute of Reedy Creek Enchancment District with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District? What about adjustments to appointments or the powers of the district? Preserve the feedback civil, as this isn’t the place for politically-charged arguing, antagonism, private assaults, or perpetuating pointless tradition wars. Whereas this matter is inherently political, we will likely be heavy-handed in deleting feedback that quantity to little greater than vapid political cheerleading. Respectfully debating the professionals & cons and implications of RCID being dissolved (or whether or not it’ll really occur) is completely effective, however don’t step outdoors the bounds of this slender matter. In case you want to shout your opinions about Ron DeSantis, The Bobs, or different politicians/executives into the web abyss, that’s why Fb was invented. 😉