Florida residents near Walt Disney World filed a lawsuit claiming they will be on the hook to pay $1 billion in Disney’s bond debt if the special district is abolished.
Florida residents in counties surrounding Disney World filed a lawsuit against Governor Ron DeSantis on May 3, alleging the repeal of Walt Disney’s special district would saddle taxpayers with $1 billion worth of bond debt.
DeSantis signed off on abolishing the Disney district on April 22 seemingly in retaliation of Disney CEO Bob Chapek slamming Florida’s passage of the “Don’t Say Gay” law. Residents of the surrounding Osceola counties now claim DeSantis violated their rights and interest when dissolving the Disney tax breaks and Reedy Creek Improvement District. They seek to block the law.
“It is without question that Defendant Governor DeSantis intended to punish Disney for a 1st Amendment protected ground of free speech,” the lawsuit states, via The Hollywood Reporter. “Defendant’s violation of Disney’s 1st Amendment rights directly resulted in a violation of Plaintiffs’ 14th Amendment rights to due process of law.”
IndieWire
by Samantha Bergeson
May 4, 2022 3:05 pm