News Reedy Creek Improvement District and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District

[Disstevefan1]

He has a plan. It’s a really good plan. It results in Disney paying more taxes and no other taxpayers paying any more. That’s the official statement put out. So reading between the lines, when the Governor seizes control of RCID and hand picks the board they will force Disney to pay additional taxes to cover the costs of the other 5 districts as well….or maybe just the ones in red

TWDC has raised the ability of NOT PAYING TAXES to an art form. Tax Laws had NEVER stopped big companies like TWDC from evading taxes.
I do hope the taxpayers are not stuck with the tax bill that resulted from this fight between DeSantis and TWDC.

 

[mikejs78]

The argument for why the law may not even apply to the Reedy Creek Improvement District may well apply to some or all of these other districts as well. It’s been 50 years so there might be something somewhere.

Well, the argument for why it may not apply to Reedy Creek is that the Reedy Creek improvement act states that if any law conflicts with the Reedy Creek Imrpvoement act, it doesn't apply to Reedy Creek, unless section 2 of the Reedy Creek improvement act is explicitly repealed.

 

[peter11435]

TWDC has raised the ability of NOT PAYING TAXES to an art form. Tax Laws had NEVER stopped big companies like TWDC from evading taxes.
I do hope the taxpayers are not stuck with the tax bill that resulted from this fight between DeSantis and TWDC.

I think you should research the effective tax rates paid by various corporations and then reevaluate your post here.

 

[peter11435]

Well, the argument for why it may not apply to Reedy Creek is that the Reedy Creek improvement act states that if any law conflicts with the Reedy Creek Imrpvoement act, it doesn't apply to Reedy Creek, unless section 2 of the Reedy Creek improvement act is explicitly repealed.

@lazyboy97o is referring to a different argument. One that hinges on the definitions of reestablished, re-ratified, and re-constituted.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I think you should research the effective tax rates paid by various corporations and then reevaluate your post here.

I stand corrected. Big companies like TWDC always pay their taxes and never use the tax laws to avoid or delay paying them....

 

[mikejs78]

@lazyboy97o is referring to a different argument. One that hinges on the definitions of reestablished, re-ratified, and re-constituted.

Yeah, that's the second argument. There's so many obvious things wrong with this legislation...

 

[flynnibus]

TWDC has raised the ability of NOT PAYING TAXES to an art form. Tax Laws had NEVER stopped big companies like TWDC from evading taxes.

It's not evading taxes when you simply are using the tax advantages the government wrote in for you. Those who scream TWDC isn't paying taxes should look into the business-friendly laws written to enable that very behavior.

And why is it even there to start with? Because offering tax advantages is the top way government can entice behavior out of private entities. You can't require a private entity do something like build a new building... or expand your business.. but you can lure them to do so with tax advantages.

Reap what you sow...

 

[peter11435]

I stand corrected. Big companies like TWDC always pay their taxes and never use the tax laws to avoid or delay paying them....

If the company was not paying its taxes there would be legal action taken against them. Using exemptions, credits… etc that are built into the tax code in order to lower your tax burden is not avoiding or delaying paying your taxes. I feel fairly confident that you likely take advantage of tax exemptions and credits yourself to do the same.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I stand corrected. Big companies like TWDC always pay their taxes and never use the tax laws to avoid or delay paying them....

If they’re using the tax laws then they are following the law.

 

[Disstevefan1]

If they’re using the tax laws then they are following the law.

THEY SURE ARE
And TWDC and RCID are totally separate entities,

 

[LAKid53]

I think you should research the effective tax rates paid by various corporations and then reevaluate your post here.

WDW paid $780M in state and local taxes in FY 2021. The millage rate for RCID is double that for the City of Orlando. Anyone thinking Disney's isn't paying taxes in Florida needs to review the company's financials.

And IIRC, didn't Disney sue Orange County due to overpayment of taxes...and win?

Disney World sues Appraiser Rick Singh over tax assessments for Magic Kingdom, Epcot, hotels

It’s inevitable: Every year at Walt Disney World, the cost of admission rises, and every year, Disney fights Orange County over its property taxes. Disney, which has challenged its property t…

www.orlandosentinel.com

 

[peter11435]

THEY SURE ARE
And TWDC and RCID are totally separate entities,

They are

 

[Brian]

Using existing tax laws to your advantage is otherwise known as being a smart businessperson, and Disney has many of them. If the legislatures of the state of Florida or the U.S. feel that the laws are no longer appropriate, it is up to them to rewrite them, not the company to stop taking advantage of them.

 

[Disstevefan1]

They are

 

[lazyboy97o]

THEY SURE ARE
And TWDC and RCID are totally separate entities,

Just stop. You don’t seem to be interested in doing anything but making the same half true and dubious claims.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Just stop. You don’t seem to be interested in doing anything but making the same half true and dubious claims.

Agreed, it's only half true that TWDC and RCID are totally separate entities....

 

[LAKid53]

It's not evading taxes when you simply are using the tax advantages the government wrote in for you. Those who scream TWDC isn't paying taxes should look into the business-friendly laws written to enable that very behavior.

And why is it even there to start with? Because offering tax advantages is the top way government can entice behavior out of private entities. You can't require a private entity do something like build a new building... or expand your business.. but you can lure them to do so with tax advantages.

Reap what you sow...

Yup.

Just ask the state and Palm Beach County about the nearly $600M in tax incentives thrown at Scripps in 2003 to entice it to create a biotech "cluster" in the county. The county spent $100M to purchase (paying $10M more than appraised value) and develop land that, woops, was never used for the facility. The deal included the requirement for Scripps to create 545 jobs by 2013. Unfortunately, the company discovered that the education level of residents was too low for many of the positions, so it brought in employees from out of state.

There are numerous cases of the state using tax incentives to attract businesses...and those businesses flopping. Digital Domains bankruptcy forced it to close its animation studio in Florida, laying off 280 employees, impacting the Film School at FSU. Can't remember the exact $$$ THAT partnership ended up costing the university. State threw $20M at the company to get it here.

My point being that WDW is a success story in this case. Adds $75B to the Central Florida economy. Pays $5B in additional taxes. Largest single site employer in the state. Responsible for a significant portion of tourism revenues. Why would ANY politician want to damage that symbiotic relationship?

 

[LAKid53]

They are

They certainly are. One is a local government created by the Florida Legislature and the other is a corporation.

 

[LAKid53]

If the company was not paying its taxes there would be legal action taken against them. Using exemptions, credits… etc that are built into the tax code in order to lower your tax burden is not avoiding or delaying paying your taxes. I feel fairly confident that you likely take advantage of tax exemptions and credits yourself to do the same.

I think most of us do when filing our 1040.

 

[LAKid53]

If the company was not paying its taxes there would be legal action taken against them. Using exemptions, credits… etc that are built into the tax code in order to lower your tax burden is not avoiding or delaying paying your taxes. I feel fairly confident that you likely take advantage of tax exemptions and credits yourself to do the same.

The Florida Department of Revenue has shut down small businesses for not collecting and remitting state sales taxes. I'm sure it would financially penalize TWDC if it failed to pay state corporate income taxes or remit the sales taxes it collected.