The ‘Disney Defenders,’ a political committee in Florida, has started a petition to add the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) to the Florida Constitution, thereby restoring its legislative powers to what was in place on January 1, 2022.
Last month, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation into law permitting the government to take over control of the RCID from Walt Disney World, which had control of the District since 1967, when it was formed. The former District has been renamed the “Central Florida Tourism Oversight District” and has five members who were hand-selected by the FL Governor.
The committee must submit 891,589 valid petition signatures to the state for the proposal to make it onto the 2024 ballot.
In more news concerning the ongoing battle between Disney and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, it appears that legal council is being sought to handle any “potential legal challenges” brought forward for things that the RCID put into place when Disney was in charge. “Things like the Developer Agreement that set in stone Disney’s rights over RCID property for the next 30 years, regardless of what a new board says” according to the Twitter thread below.
According to an article in The Orlando Sentinel, a Developer Agreement was put into place by The Walt Disney Company one day prior to the Florida House vote, which put the Governor in charge going forward. The agreement essentially ties the hands of any future board members for decades.
We’re going to have to deal with it and correct it. It’s a subversion of the will of the voters and the Legislature and the governor. It completely circumvents the authority of this board to govern.
Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board member Brian Aungst Jr.
Disney defended the agreements and issued the following statement.
All agreements signed between Disney and the district were appropriate and were discussed and approved in open, noticed public forums in compliance with Florida’s Government in the Sunshine law.
Senior Editor for the DIS and DCL Fan | Disney Vacation Club Member | Thrilled to have been a '13/'14 Disney Parks Moms Panelist (now planDisney) | Lover of all things Disney; the Magic of Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and Disney Cruise Line | ºoº
