- Local governing body would have a change in leadership
- Legislation would not impact outstanding debt obligations
Florida lawmakers are proposing to give Ron DeSantis full control over the board overseeing Walt Disney Co.’s special district, as the Republican governor escalates his fight with the entertainment giant.
A new bill filed Monday would give the governor power to appoint the five-member board of supervisors that runs what is now known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District, a special government entity that’s granted sweeping benefits to Disney for half a century. Those appointees will then have to be confirmed by state senators. The new rules prevent anyone with ties to a theme park in the past three years from serving on the board.
“Florida is dissolving the corporate kingdom and beginning a new era of accountability and transparency,” Bryan Griffin, DeSantis’ press secretary, said in an emailed statement. The former rules “gifted extraordinary special privileges to a single corporation.”
Bloomberg Markets
By Nic Querolo and Felipe Marques
February 6, 2023