It seems the spell casts to protect the magic kingdom is losing its power…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District “there’s a new sheriff in town” as he vowed to make the self-governing area accountable for its debts and unable to continue operating under special provisions.
DeSantis lauded his new plan to take complete control of Reedy Creek, which gave Disney unprecedented power over the last 56 years in the area encompassing Walt Disney Resort.
He also went on the defense regarding critics who claimed ahead of the unveiling of the legislation earlier this week that he was being too soft on Disney and was not going to hold their special, self-governing district accountable.
“This is obviously now going to be controlled by the state of Florida, which is no longer self-governing for them,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Ocala on Wednesday. “So, there’s a new sheriff in town and that’s just the way it’s going to be.”
Under the proposed legislation backed by DeSantis and state Republicans, the governor would have authority to appoint the members of a new five-person board for the special district, which will be renamed the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
Speaking to reporters in Ocala, he said that the company would no longer have self-government.
“Disney is gonna pay its fair share of taxes and Disney is gonna honor the debt. … This is obviously now going to be controlled by the state of Florida,” the governor said. “So, there’s a new sheriff in town.”
These remarks come as a new bill released this week put the entertainment giant’s district, the Reedy Creek Improvement District, under the control of DeSantis and legislative leaders.
The bill prohibits anyone who worked or had a contract with a theme park or entertainment complex in the past three years, or their relatives, from serving on the revamped district’s board of supervisors.
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The governor’s remarks about putting the Reedy Creek Improvement District under state control came the same day Disney announced it is restructuring to cut costs, according to CNBC.
By cutting about 7,000 jobs, the entertainment giant will be trimming around 3 percent of its workforce. The company employs about 220,000 people around the world with 166,000 of those in the United States.
Disney is cutting $5.5 billion in costs, which includes $3.5 billion from content areas other than sports and $2.5 billion from non-content cuts.
“We must return creativity to the center of the company, increase accountability, improve results and ensure the quality of our content and experiences,” Disney CEO Robert Iger said on an earnings-related conference call, according to The New York Times.
“We are going to a really hard look at everything we make [in general entertainment] because things in a more competitive world have simply gotten more expensive,” Iger said, according to Variety.
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Sources: WesternJournal, Fox Business, CNBC, Variety
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