Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says he is “receptive” to the Florida legislature repealing the 1967 Reedy Creek Improvement Act, which essentially allows Walt Disney World its own self-governing district.
DeSantis has repeatedly criticized Disney after CEO Bob Chapek and divisions of the company denounced the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Disney released a statement announcing they hope to get the new bill repealed.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that DeSantis said of the Reedy Creek Improvement Act on Thursday in Titusville, “As the governor, I could be presented with changes to that. And I think I’ve said I’d be receptive to that. But ultimately, the Legislature would have to move forward. So I know that there’s a lot of discussion about that. And we’ll just see how that shakes out.”
He also said that the state tax breaks awarded to Disney apply to all businesses equally and he was not looking to end them.
At a different event in Palm Beach on Thursday, DeSantis said of Disney, “I don’t support special privileges in law, just because a company is powerful, and they’ve been able to wield a lot of power.”
On Friday, DeSantis said of Disney’s individual power over their property granted by the act, “I think a lot of those things that have accumulated over the years would probably not be justifiable. …I was shocked to see some of the stuff that’s in there. They could do their own nuclear power plant. Is there any other private company in the state that can just build a nuclear power plant on their own?”
A bill was previously introduced to specifically revoke Disney’s ability to build a nuclear power plant, but it did not pass the 2019 legislative session.
DeSantis said regarding tax breaks, “I think what people are pointing to is just a general program that we have for every business … Now the Legislature can certainly reevaluate that as a whole. But my view is, we should just treat everybody equally.”
For the latest Disney Parks news and info, follow WDW News Today on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
The post Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ‘Receptive’ to Repealing 1967 Reedy Creek Improvement Act appeared first on WDW News Today.