Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Takes Aim At Disney’s Self-Governing ‘Special Privileges’ After Company’s Opposition To “Don’t Say Gay” Bill

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is one-third of the way to punishing Disney for opposing his anti-LGBTQ legislation, the widely-discredited, potentially unconstitutional “Don’t Say Gay” law, but some Florida taxpayers are in for a reportedly multi-billion dollar shock if he signs on the dotted line.On Wednesday the Florida Senate, succumbing to DeSantis’ worst instincts, passed a bill that would eliminate a 1967 law that essentially created a 39-square mile area, now almost entirely occupied by Disney World, that enables it to act as its own government – including providing all the services, like power, water, sewers, police, and fire, that local governments do.Called the Reedy Creek Improvement District, DeSantis now wants to essentially void that law. The House is expected to pass that bill Thursday, putting DeSantis’ temper tantrum at his feet.But according to the Orange County Tax Collector, Orange County would be on the hook for “all debt and obligations with no extra funds,” meaning “Orange County would take on $163 million [in debt obligations] per year.”It gets worse for Florida taxpayers.“If Reedy Creek is dissolved, Orange and Osceola counties would assume responsibilities handled by the district like sewer and road maintenance, meaning taxpayers in those counties would pay, The Miami Herald reports.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Florida Senate on Wednesday passed a bill to repeal a law allowing Walt Disney World to operate a private government over its properties in the state, escalating a feud with the entertainment giant over its opposition to what critics call the “ Don’t Say Gay ” law.The proposal could have huge tax implications for Disney, whose series of theme parks have over the decades transformed Orlando into one of the world's most popular tourist destinations.

Wall Street Journal, the Senate passed the bill 23-16. It would end the privileges Disney receives as part of exemptions created in 1967 for an area known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The exemption in effect allows Disney to govern itself on Disney World grounds, including having its own fire department and board of supervisors, as well as its ability to oversee land and environmental regulations.

Florida’s state senate voted to strip The Walt Disney Co. of a 55-year-old special district that has allowed Walt Disney World to largely self govern its Walt Disney World theme park property.

Governor Ron DeSantis after his Dept. of Health issued a statement labeled “guidance” Wednesday in opposition to the U.S.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis escalated his attack on The Walt Disney Co. on Tuesday, as he called on the state legislature to end a self-governing special district covering Walt Disney World.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media WriterFlorida Gov. Ron DeSantis raised the stakes in his fight with Disney on Tuesday, announcing that he would call on the Legislature to terminate the company’s self-governing district in Orlando.DeSantis has been fighting with Disney over the company’s opposition to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which forbids classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through third grade.

rejecting 54 math books, some of them due to what the division said were references to critical race theory.Here’s how Colbert ripped into the state department’s decision, which was supported by Gov. Ron DeSantis: “So why the war against arithmetic? Well, the Florida education department explained that reasons for rejecting textbooks included references to critical race theory, which the Florida legislature says includes theories that distort historical events.

Florida’s recent, so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill.Roy P. Disney — the great-nephew of Walt Disney and the co-founder of Walt Disney Co — disclosed recently in a statement that his child, Charlee, is trans.Roy revealed the news while also pledging $500,000 to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) alongside his wife, Sheri.Charlee, 30, is a high school biology and science teacher who uses they/them pronouns and came out to their family four years ago.“Equality matters deeply to us, especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community,” Roy wrote in a statement.Roy’s sister, Abigail Disney, tweeted her praise and adoration for her brother’s gesture. “Today I am busting with pride at what my brother and his wife have done.

The Walt Disney Co. initially took heat for not taking a public position on Florida’s so-called “don’t say gay” bill — and now they are under fire for doing just that.

On Thursday, a group of Florida school-age students, parents of LGBTQ youth, and a teacher filed suit against a recent bill signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis that prohibits LGBTQ-related content or lessons in primary grade classrooms.The lawsuit, filed in U.S.

finally denounced the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which was signed into law earlier this week.After weeks of controversy surrounding Disney’s silence on the anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and subsequent walkouts by Disney employees, CEO Bob Chapek apologized and announced a pause in political donations in Florida. On Monday, Disney reacted to the law’s passage by stating that Florida HB 1557 “should never have passed and should never have been signed into law,” and adding that the company would be working with other organizations to get it repealed.Since then, DeSantis has taken aim at the company several times, including on Thursday when he told reporters that the state government may be re-evaluating Disney’s “special privileges” in Florida. “Someone said, ‘Hey, Disney has all these special perks.

Florida State GOP Representative Spencer Roach said legislators have met twice to discuss repealing a statute that impacts how Disney can invest in its theme parks there. The move is retaliatory after the company and CEO Bob Chapek came out strongly against the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill just signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has been lobbing criticism Disney’s way this week.

Republican Governor Ron DeSantis is the leading defendant in a massive 80-page lawsuit by Equality Florida against the “Don’t Say Gay” law he signed this week. Roberta Kaplan, one of the nation’s top civil rights lawyers, who successfully argued the Supreme Court case that effectively overturned the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA),  is the lead attorney on the case.“Florida House Bill 1557 (widely known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law) is an unlawful attempt to stigmatize, silence, and erase LGBTQ people in Florida’s public schools.

Zack Sharf Ron Perlman slammed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis this week after he signed into law the controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill on March 28. The “Hellboy” and “Don’t Look Up” actor posted a video to his Twitter page in which he called DeSantis a “fucking Nazi pig” and a “piece of shit.”  The legislation, officially titled the Parental Rights in Education Bill, bans kindergarten to third grade classrooms from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity topics.

apologized and announced a pause in political donations in Florida. On Monday, Disney reacted to the law’s passage by stating that Florida HB 1557 “should never have passed and should never have been signed into law” and would be working with other organizations to get it repealed.“We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country,” a Disney spokesperson said.In a Tuesday news conference, DeSantis said that Disney had “crossed the line” with its criticism of the state government.“For Disney to come out and put a statement and say that the bill should have never passed and that they are going to actively work to repeal it,” he said, “I think one was fundamentally dishonest, but two I think that crossed the line.”#BREAKING: Gov.

Disney has issued a statement following the signing of Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill into law.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has signed the controversial Parental Rights in Education bill, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, into law.

all sexually-related or “age-inappropriate” topics from being broached in primary grade classrooms. But Republicans rejected the amendment, choosing to ban only LGBTQ-specific content. LGBTQ advocates also argue that, in enforcing the bill, teachers will send an implicit message to LGBTQ-identifying students that they have no supportive allies and should closet themselves, which may lead some youth to contemplate suicide due to feelings of isolation or depression.DeSantis, who has been roundly criticized for his support of the bill, slammed LGBTQ advocates and Hollywood elites — who mocked the bill and Florida at the most recent Academy Awards on Sunday — for attacking him, saying: “If the people who held up degenerates like Harvey Weinstein as exemplars and as heroes and as all that, if those are the types of people that are opposing us on parents’ rights, I wear that like a badge of honor.“They don’t want to admit that they support a lot of the things that we’re providing protections against,” he said, according to Fox News.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a new law that bans instruction of gender identity and sexual orientation for public school children from Kindergarten to the third grade, drawing condemnation from one of the state’s largest employers, The Walt Disney Co.