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

[tissandtully]

Not all. Some are genuinely beneficial, or serve a purposes that neither state nor local governments want to handle.

But this was about getting special treatment, then it should be evenly applied is all I’m saying.

 

[GoofGoof]

And if all the other special districts were dissolved too.

The irony is that special tax districts were never designed as a way to avoid taxes for anyone. In relation to taxes if they have taxing authority it’s always in addition to traditional local property taxes not instead of. So dissolving all special districts would result in just about every landowner in the state paying more in property taxes and then some getting a reduction due to no longer paying into a special district.

 

[tissandtully]

Based on an alleged "special tax status" that suggests Disney was receiving a tax break not available to anyone else. If the question has the facts wrong, then the result is useless.

Stop with the nuance!

 

[GoofGoof]

Stop with the nuance!

Yeah if you see an issue with the wording you are just politically biased. Its a perfectly worded poll question

 

[tissandtully]

The irony is that special tax districts were never designed as a way to avoid taxes for anyone. In relation to taxes if they have taxing authority it’s always in addition to traditional local property taxes not instead of. So dissolving all special districts would result in just about every landowner in the state paying more in property taxes and then some getting a reduction due to no longer paying into a special district.

Right I know, I mean if the complaint was it wasn’t a level playing field all new rules should apply to all of them. Not targeted to a specific one for political gain and I think we’re back at the beginning of the thread lol.

 

[mkt]

But this was about getting special treatment, then it should be evenly applied is all I’m saying.

Not all special districts are about special treatment. Many are to there to deal with a specialized issue (water management) or to incentivize public infrastructure (libraries).

RCID was unique, and I agree, it needed to go. But not this way, and not as punishment for a public disagreement.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

What I am saying though - is if you really read that question - word for word, line by line, I can't find a partisan bit in it. It's almost like a 1970's journalist wrote it. We have become so used to everything politicized in every word we read, I think it may be hard to recognize a truly unbiased question.

You don't think "special tax status" is misleading?

 

[Lilofan]

Going back to RCID...I know I should know this, but which organization provides on-site medical services to guests in the parks? Like, if I slip on a churro in Animal Kingdom and need medical attention, is the RCID EMS the first responders?

And a free hospital ride to Celebration Health. Average cost in my area to the hospital -$2K.

 

[LittleBuford]

If it's not intentional, it's at least incompetent. It ties a lot of disparate issues together in a single question. It asks if you support DeSantis' actions, but it does not specify which actions. For instance, one might support the legislation on discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity without necessarily understanding or agreeing with the rest of the statement, but because it's the last thing mentioned before the question of support/oppose, it could very easily be the part that respondents tie their answer to.

I agree. It is a poorly worded question that isn’t likely to yield the best results.

Full disclosure: in my student days, I worked part time for a major opinion-poll company. Not all the questions were as clearly or well phrased as they should have been (which was something I had no control over), but our intention was always to gather the most reliable data possible. Contrary to popular opinion, polling companies—legitimate ones at least—have absolutely no interest in skewing the data one way or the other. The businesses and organisations that sponsor such polls are looking for information that is accurate and usable.

 

[GoofGoof]

I agree. It is a poorly worded question that isn’t likely to yield the best results.

Full disclosure: in my student days, I worked part time for a major opinion-poll company. Not all the questions were as clearly or well phrased as they should have been (which was something I had no control over), but our intention was always to gather the most reliable data possible. Contrary to popular opinion, polling companies—legitimate ones at least—have absolutely no interest in skewing the data one way or the other. The businesses and organisations that sponsor such polls are looking for information that is accurate and usable.

Based on the limited back and forth here I suspect it would be very difficult to word this question and get an unbiased answer. If you asked the question without any color as I suggested you would have to add a 3rd option: yes, no, and don’t know since many respondents wouldn’t have enough knowledge to answer yes or no and I suspect that a large number of responses would be in bucket 3. I actually would be curious to see how many people have no real opinion on this.

 

[LittleBuford]

People DO care if an activist teacher tells their daughter that she can turn into a boy if she wants to.

There’s a problem when this sort of exceptional, outlying scenario is presented as a widespread issue that requires sweeping legislation.

 

[Chi84]

There’s a problem when this sort of exceptional, outlying scenario is presented as a widespread issue that requires sweeping legislation.

Even if it was, the law should have been more narrowly drafted.

 

[scottieRoss]

What I am saying though - is if you really read that question - word for word, line by line, I can't find a partisan bit in it. It's almost like a 1970's journalist wrote it. We have become so used to everything politicized in every word we read, I think it may be hard to recognize a truly unbiased question.

there actually is. 'Remove its special tax status' implies that it pays less tax than anyone else does.
Imagine if the question had said 'requiring local county residents to pay for the infrastructure, roadways, utility construction and emergency services that Disney pays for currently through additional taxes paid to the special district'.

 

[GoofGoof]

Just my 2 cents….everyone is free to do what they want to do:

Are we really going back to debating the merits of the original bill that started all of this? 750 pages ago that started and was stopped for good reason. The posts are all going to be deleted anyway. There’s plenty to discuss around RCID itself.

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

What I am saying though - is if you really read that question - word for word, line by line, I can't find a partisan bit in it. It's almost like a 1970's journalist wrote it. We have become so used to everything politicized in every word we read, I think it may be hard to recognize a truly unbiased question.

People really do hear what they want to hear. The question isn't unbiased in the slightest, it completely misrepresents what is happening.

It repeats the misleading talking point about Disney's "special tax status" that anyone who has read up on this in the slightest can tell you results in Disney paying MORE taxes. The question implies removing a special advantage. Of course people think it sounds reasonable. They're ignorant of the reality.

Likewise with the term "oversight board" which could suggest a reasonable government entity making sure Disney adheres to various rules, safety guidelines, and so on. Again completely disregarding the fact that the goal of the board was to influence Disney's content and punish them, and has little to nothing to do with how the theme parks and infrastructure are run.

 

[lazyboy97o]

RCID was unique, and I agree, it needed to go.

Why did it need to go?

 

[afterabme]

How much money does Disney spend in Florida on film production and would HB7073 (filed yesterday) mess with them? Has to do with eliminating tax exemptions in the film industry.

Not much. Most spending is related to the Parks & Resorts with some small amounts being spent on shows and TV for Disney Media in Florida. Florida does not have the tax incentives that Georgia has for shows and movies. In fact, after Florida's tax incentive programs ended, most Florida-based crews left the state for California or Atlanta.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

The autonomy is the issue, not the size of the tax bill.

And the poll even points out that the action was retaliation for Disney opining on the Parental Rights bill. So I don't think you can make the case that the question language is biased in favor of DeSantis.

I gotta be honest…do you know how and why they asked for “autonomy”?

Like the actual history?

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Why did it need to go?

I was going to ask the same thing, I felt the first paragraph perfectly described RCID, and then the second went the opposite direction.

RCID seemed to benefit everyone, why get rid of it?

 

[afterabme]

Yes. In fact, unless there's several medical emergencies happening simultaneously within the park, they are generally strategically positioned backstage for a quick response.

RCFD handles most, save for some circumstances where they had to call in Orange or Osceola for mutual aid.