Hello new hotel tax for all lodging properties in the cities of Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista?
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News Reedy Creek Improvement District and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District
- Thread starter castlecake2.0
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flynnibus
Premium Member
lentesta
Premium Member
A good point. Let's assume that Disney could win, eventually, through the courts.
The question they might be asking themselves is around the size of the financial impact of being the governor's punching bag for however many years that takes. What would it do to revenue to be villified in speeches now, and PAC-funded ads in the '24 and '26 election cycles?
I'm reasonably sure there's a contingent within the company who favors going along with RCID dissolution in the hopes it'll appease the governor. And I'm reasonably sure there's an opposing contingent within the company whose retort is "Neville Chamberlain had an agreement too."
Until recently, I thought there was zero chance of Disney just accepting dissolution. I'm much less certain of that now.
sedati
Well-Known Member
And Disney could perhaps look at ways it contributes money to the local economy beyond taxes. Maybe they don't "buy local" for supplies and such. If they're treated like a California-based company, then send as much money that way as possible or at least out-of-state.
Imagine if the Flamingo casino in Vegas caught the ire of its governor so they decided to revoke the gambling license of any resort from 1946.
JohnD
Well-Known Member
I'm sure all of that will come up in debate as the bills go through committees during the Florida Session. I would expect amendments from both parties on it. I certainly agree their best long-term play is low profile. Every CM in Disney is entitled to their own point of view on parental rights bill. That doesn't necessarily mean Disney had to weigh in on it when their interests are the theme parks, cruises, and Vero Beach resort.
flynnibus
Premium Member
With so many parties involved, including immediate financial impacts, public services, etc.. There is no way such things happen without court stays to hold the status quo until the courts decide all the matters.
Disney doesn't have to settle for dissolution to appease the govenor. Unlike Disney, DeSantis is on a clock... Disney can wait him out with the courts holding the pause button.
JohnD
Well-Known Member
Even if a bill is passed during session and signed by the Governor, I agree that a court stay is possible. You see that with multiple legislation passed around the country.
UNCgolf
Well-Known Member
I think this is a potentially viable solution -- the issue goes to court and isn't resolved while DeSantis is governor, and the successor pulls back and stops defending it in court which would essentially revert everything back to the status quo.
That would be heavily dependent on who the next governor is, though. It could easily be someone who wants to keep the same DeSantis strategy going.
mikejs78
Premium Member
The thing is, if Disney goes along with it, what's to stop the newly governor-controlled board from raising taxes in the district? What would stop them from doubling taxes and cutting services to Disney next time they do something the governor deems as being too "woke"? Or denying building permits?
That seems to me a more risky scenario for Disney than, say, if the district were dissolved and everything reverted to the counties. Then they'd have the constitutional limits on taxes and services in place, which don't apply to the district.
There's also the wildcard of the two municipalities. What powers can they reclaim from Reedy Creek to make this more palatable to Disney?
flynnibus
Premium Member
My point being is - time is on Disney's side, as well as court stays. There is no need to capitulate purely because DeSantis is hardline. Compromise should come in the form of a new way forward that gets wins for both sides.
There is going to be a long RCID fight on multiple angles... from the district itself, the bonds, the landholders, etc.. Then potentially whatever 'new' plan is presented could bring in other suits like from Orange and Oceleoa, etc.
And all of that is before Disney even enters the ring themselves.
The great thing about a successor to DeSantis is... they can claim closure as their own win as well as whatever concessions. It's not about who started the conversation.. it's about who gets to lay claim to the spoils. This actually is incentive for a successor to compromise and get closure.. they aren't the ones who had to backtrack, it's all spoils for them... just a question of what items you get.
This thing is going to be measured in YEARS not months if the state keeps going on this.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
Even if Disney decided to do nothing it doesn’t necessarily mean that others don’t have standing and could chose to act. Just one of the other land owners in the District could decide it is worth fighting to maintain their status quo. Bond holders could also sue if there are concerns about the new arrangement or just the precedent.
ParentsOf4
Well-Known Member
Disney is battling a more immediate clock than DeSantis, the collapse of its reputation rating among consumers:
In a deeply divided United States, does a drawn-out legal battle help Disney repair their reputation?
Iger already stated:
Iger doesn't get to decide what gets branded as political; that's beyond his control. If Disney fights this, it will be framed as political. So then how does a drawn-out political battle align with Iger's desire to "quiet things down?"
DeSantis is going away in few years. A legal battle will take longer than that.
Disney's long-term interests might be best served by "quieting things down" for a year or two and instead focussing on improving their perception among consumers. Take this strategy and I predict that Disney will have control over the new RCID in 3 to 5 years. Fight it, and Disney risks damaging their reputation further in the short-term and, long-term, losing important legal battles in the conservative Florida Supreme Court, 11th Circuit, and U.S. Supreme Court. It's risky going down this path, even if we feel Disney is in the right.
In a deeply divided United States, does a drawn-out legal battle help Disney repair their reputation?
Iger already stated:
To the extent that I can work to quiet things down, I’m going to do that. But I think it’s important to put in perspective what some of these subjects are and not just simply brand them political.
Iger doesn't get to decide what gets branded as political; that's beyond his control. If Disney fights this, it will be framed as political. So then how does a drawn-out political battle align with Iger's desire to "quiet things down?"
DeSantis is going away in few years. A legal battle will take longer than that.
Disney's long-term interests might be best served by "quieting things down" for a year or two and instead focussing on improving their perception among consumers. Take this strategy and I predict that Disney will have control over the new RCID in 3 to 5 years. Fight it, and Disney risks damaging their reputation further in the short-term and, long-term, losing important legal battles in the conservative Florida Supreme Court, 11th Circuit, and U.S. Supreme Court. It's risky going down this path, even if we feel Disney is in the right.
lazyboy97o
Well-Known Member
Only a very few number of court cases get big, ongoing press coverage and they’re typically criminal cases. A headline at the beginning and a headline at rulings is not that big of an issue, especially since the people it will turn off are already turned off by “wokeness” that Disney is not abandoning. This isn’t changing in the short term.
Ehhh... a former US president built an entire campaign out of spite. And his supporters still tend to be the loudest voices in any room.
sedati
Well-Known Member
It's a card in Disney's deck however. I'm not saying they should play it, but they should have some numbers at the ready.
Disstevefan1
Well-Known Member
The state created RCID and could at any time dissolve RCID. They didn't until now because both Florida and and TWDC valued their partnership. DeSantis and TWDC got into an argument over the law passed in Florida and DeSantis simply did what the state always had the power to do.
Whatever report the state produced two decades ago saying "district couldn't be dissolved in the face of a possibility of Disney being acquired and no longer owning WDW" show just how much the state and TWDC were indeed partners.
TWDC could always be acquired, and the state could not stop it.
If TWDC stays on its current path, I would not be surprised if it does get acquired.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Of which virtually none has to do with RCID
Which is why Disney will sit back and watch RCID and others be the soldiers. Something stated how many pages ago? And when we look at all the stories since.. whose at the table? Not Disney.
These kinds of court fights are not CourtTV stuff. They cycle through years of fillings and motions... none of which will be news worthy until conclusions are drawn and new appeals start. The news you are going to see is when the courts first issue their stays, and when new players join the fight. Besides that, it will be years of minutia that will never make the headlines.
flynnibus
Premium Member
Disney wants to be the good neighbor, good employer, and bedrock of Florida. Threatening the public isn't in that book.
flynnibus
Premium Member
mikejs78
Premium Member
Meh. I don't buy this whole opinion of Disney has cratered thing. The most recent polls on this were taken right at the time of the don't say gay bill, so the poll may just have been a fleeting reflection of that controversy.
More importantly it hasn't been reflected in park attendance, merchandise sales, the box office, and Disney+ subscriptions. So some people may be mad at "woke" Disney, but they are still visiting the parks, their kids are still watching Mickey, and they're still going to see Avatar.