Disney's Bob Iger Addresses Battle with Florida Gov. DeSantis
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The legal battle between the Walt Disney Company and the state of Florida over Walt Disney World's special district continues to heat up.
In a publicly broadcast earnings call earlier today, Disney CEO Bob Iger was asked about his thoughts on the special district skirmish, a result of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis' attempts to punish Disney for standing against his anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation. The latest developments have included Walt Disney Company suing DeSantis' hand-picked board on the grounds that its plans for the Reedy Creek Oversight Board, where Disney World is located, were "enacted in retaliation for Disney's political speech in violation of the First Amendment." For context, Disney is the largest taxpayer in Florida and currently has over 75,000 employees in the state, all being paid above minimum wage.
"Regarding Florida I have got a few things I want to say about that," Iger declared on the record during the call. "First of all, I think the case that we filed last month made our position and the facts very clear and that is really that this is about one thing and one thing only—and that is retaliating against us for taking a position about pending legislation. And we believe that in us taking that position we are merely exercising our right to free speech."
He continued. "Also, this is not about special privileges or a level playing field or Disney in any way using its leverage around the state of Florida. But since there's been a lot said about special districts and the arrangement that we have, I want to set the record straight on that too. There are about 2,000 special districts in Florida. Most are established to foster investor development, where we were one of them. He basically made it easier for us—and others, by the way—to do business in Florida, and we built a business that employs, as we said before, over 75,000 people, and attracts tens of millions of people to the state. So while it is easy to say that the Reedy Creek Special District that was established for us over 50 years ago benefited us, it is misleading to not also consider how much Disney benefited the state of Florida. And we are also not the only company operating a special district. I mentioned 2,000—the Daytona Speedway, it has one. So do the Villages, which is a permanent retirement community, and there are countless others."
Iger continued. "So if the goal is leveling the playing field in the uniform application of the law or government oversight of special districts, [that] needs to occur or be applied to all special districts. There's also a false narrative that we have been fighting to protect tax breaks as part of this. But in fact we are the largest taxpayer in Central Florida. We pay more taxes, specifically more real estate taxes, as a result of that special district. And we all know there was no concerted effort to do anything to dismantle what was once called Reedy Creek Special District until we spoke out [against DeSantis' anti-LGBTQIA+] legislation. So this is plainly a matter of retaliation while the rest of the Florida special districts continue operating basically as they were."
What's more, "I think it's also important for us to say our primary goal has always been to be able to continue to do exactly what we have been doing there, which is investing in Florida. We are proud of the tourism industry that we created and we want to continue delivering the best possible experience for guests going forward," Iger concluded. "We never wanted—and we certainly never expected—to be in the position of having to defend our business interests in federal court, particularly having such a terrific relationship with the state as we have had for more than 50 years. We employ thousands of people and, by the way, we pay them above the minimum wage, substantially above the minimum wage, dictated by the state of Florida. We also provide them with great benefits and free education. So, I'm going to finish what is obviously kind of a long answer by asking one question: does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes—or not?"
Keep up with the battle between Disney and the state of Florida—or rather, the puppet political police put in place to pick on the state's biggest source of tourist income and other economic contributions--here on io9.
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So Disney is the single largest tax payer and employer in the state, but DeSantis and his goons think they can push them around.
I would have loved to hear Iger say he was convening a committee to look into moving to another state.
In other Disney news - Iger said he started talks with Comcast to buy out their share of Hulu and that Hulu and Disney + will combine by the end of the year.
disney needs to bite the bullet, shut down it's florida operations until next year for a "remodel" and bring wussolini to his knees.
Does DeSantis think he is a Democrat or something!
Only Democrats get to use the power of the office to attack political rivals!
As for Disney- fuck them. They deserve whatever lost revenue comes their way. Canceled subscriptions to Disney plus- and their woke Movies underperforming expectations at the box office in the US- are a good start.
You are correct- Disney should move. How much would it cost them to move all of their physical assets out of Florida? I am also sure that every state would love to give them the same deal they had in Florida- before DeSantis removed the perk. Complete authority over all of their holdings. I am sure every politician is lining up eagerly to give away all of their power over land, zoning, tax collection, and area law/law enforcement.
that amusement park will be there long after [deleted shits the bed...]
True that. Big talk from big tech, but they can't afford to pack up and move.
In the end, Governor DeSantis, who will become President DeSantis, is in charge of the State of Florida.
Humongous corporations like Disney should stay out of politics and also pay their fair share of taxes
Hmmm... I see an R after his name. Weird.
Oh, I'm certain that all political parties at some time abuse their political power.
Sure the largest tax payer and employer in the state. Fuck 'em. Great plan.
There aren't enough anti-woke snowflakes in the world to effect Disney's bottom line, but if it makes them feel superior about themselves they should keep at it. It amuses the rest of us.
Why would they have to move their physical assets? They could just build new elsewhere and hang a closed sign out front. The unemployment costs alone would sink the state for years. Then couple that with the ripple effect of those 75K people not eating out and buying things - maybe even a 1/4 or more completely moving with Disney... the 10s of thousands no longer visiting and spending on meals, hotels, rental cars and going to lesser parks... Who gets hurt worse? Yeah good plan.
Politicians in NC and GA have already publicly stated they would love to talk to Disney about moving.
All corporations should, but it's populists fault they can when they insisted on personhood for corporations with the Citizens United ruling. Also according to the article Disney paid over a billion in state property taxes last year. They are the single biggest tax payer in the state.
In the end, Governor DeSantis will fade into a cushy job with a political "think tank" and leave others to clean up his mess in FL. His idiotic brand of populism isn't popular outside the extreme base, plus he continues to lose ground in the polls against Trump so I don't think he's going to occupy the Big Chair anytime soon.
So the biggest corporations in the state should be able to set there own rules? Fuck the voters?
So the rules should be different for only one business and not the other 2000 special tax districts?
Oh really? Do you want to say that about Koch Industries?
Kock Industries, Exxon, Twitter, My Pillow, Chic-Fil-A...
thank-you. My mind went completely blank after Koch
That's a lie,
Tell it to Iger. From the article...
This is interesting and something that the DeSantis group will not tell you.
It's amazing the lack of understanding from some about Disney and the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
It's been explained over and over, but they still cling to their alternative facts no matter what. When they aren't spewing falsehoods they are deflecting from the fact that 1 company is being singled out for 1 reason over politics. They had a shit fit not that long ago when a city tried to stop a chic-fil-a store trying to open in an airport.
You can't expect much more from a group of lemmings, EG.
It doesn't fit their narrative. No way does a republican governor go after a private corporation over a free speech issue!