Disney adds new Florida land use law to lawsuit against DeSantis

Jack Birle

May 08, 02:10 PM May 08, 02:10 PM

Disney filed an amendment to its lawsuit against Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) Monday, adding a land use bill and recent comments by DeSantis to its complaint.

The main addition to its complaint is a land use bill, or SB 1604, that includes an amendment nullifying the agreement Disney made with the previous Reedy Creek Improvement District board that undercut the new DeSantis-appointed board's power over the district encompassing the Walt Disney World Resort.

DISNEY'S FROSTY GOVERNMENT RELATIONS HAVE GONE COAST TO COAST

DeSantis signed the bill into law on Friday after the state House and Senate passed it on Thursday.

Disney called the new bill "unconstitutional," pairing it with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District's legislative action that the agreement between Disney and the previous board was void. The company alleges the legislative action and the land use law violate the contracts and takings clauses along with the due process clause of the 14th Amendment and the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

"There is no rational basis to invalidate the Contracts, and the purported justifications for doing so are pretextual," the filing said.

"Because the Legislative Declaration and Senate Bill 1604 retaliate against Disney for its protected speech, Disney is entitled to a declaratory judgment that the Legislative Declaration and Senate Bill 1604 are unconstitutional and an order enjoining Defendants from enforcing them," reads the lawsuit.

The amended lawsuit seeks to have the law declared "unlawful and unenforceable."

The bill was amended last month to include a provision to allow "an independent special district" to be "precluded from complying" with agreements made in the three months before the modifying of laws on how the governing body selects members. The amendment also allows the new governing body to vote on readopting the agreements within four months of taking power.

The amendment does not directly name the former Reedy Creek Improvement District or the new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.

The new filing also cited new comments from DeSantis as evidence of alleged retaliation against protected speech.

The lawsuit now begins with a quote from DeSantis via remarks Friday, in which he stated the legislative action regarding Disney began after its condemnation of the Parental Rights in Education bill.

The amended filing also included comments the governor made regarding Disney's silence on politics since the fallout from its opposition to the Parental Rights in Education bill.

"Governor DeSantis trumpeted the unequivocal intent and perceived success of his retribution campaign: 'Since our skirmish last year, Disney has not been involved in any of those issues. They have not made a peep. That, ultimately, is the most important, that Disney is not allowed to pervert the system to the detriment of Floridians,'" the filing said, citing DeSantis's Friday comments.

The lawsuit was originally filed last month in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, alleging DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board had engaged in a "relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain State officials."

"Governor DeSantis and his allies have no apparent intent to moderate their retaliatory campaign any time soon," the amended lawsuit said.

The feud between DeSantis and the company, which led to Disney's central Florida district being restructured, stemmed from Disney denouncing DeSantis's push for the Parental Rights in Education Act last year. Disney had maintained full autonomy over the district since its creation in 1967.

The Washington Examiner reached out to DeSantis's office for comment.

Disney's frosty government relations have gone coast-to-coast

Jack Birle

May 07, 09:16 AM May 07, 09:16 AM

Disney's icy relationship with the Florida government has been dominating headlines, but in recent years the company has also had a frosty relationship with the California government regarding its theme park operations.

Here is a look at the times when Disney's relationships with state governments went sour in recent years for both Florida and California.

THE KEY MOMENTS OF THE DISNEY-DESANTIS BATTLE

California

When the coronavirus pandemic swept through the U.S. in March 2020, nearly all businesses shut down, including theme parks.

Disney closed the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, on March 14, 2020, and the Walt Disney World Resort in central Florida on March 16, 2020, for what was supposed to be until April 1, 2020. Later, the closure of both resorts was made indefinite as much of the country remained on lockdown, but in May 2020, states began to reopen with restrictions.

The company announced plans to reopen the theme parks of the Walt Disney World Resort on July 11, 2020, and plans to reopen the theme parks of the Disneyland Resort on July 17, 2020. The Florida resort's plans were approved, but the California resort's reopening was later delayed indefinitely after the state stalled on giving reopening guidelines.

With the June 24, 2020, announcement that Disneyland's reopening had been indefinitely delayed due to a lack of state guidance, the company was at the mercy of the California government for reopening. Months passed without guidance, and tensions grew between Disney and the California government.

On Oct. 1, 2020, Bob Iger, who was executive chairman of the Walt Disney Company at the time, abruptly resigned from Gov. Gavin Newsom's (D-CA) COVID-19 economic task force. Days later, Newsom said at a press conference that he was in "no hurry in putting out guidelines" for theme park reopening, adding that "we are going to be led by a health-first framework."

Disney publicly condemned Newsom's comments, adding that all other theme parks Disney operates had been able to reopen at a limited capacity by that point in the pandemic.

“We absolutely reject the suggestion that reopening the Disneyland Resort is incompatible with a ‘health-first’ approach,” Chief Medical Officer for Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products, Dr. Pamela Hymel, said in a statement.

“The fact is, that since March, we have taken a robust science-based approach to responsibly reopening our parks and resorts across the globe. Our health and safety protocols were developed in consultation with epidemiologists and data scientists, and after considering guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and experts in local government and health agencies. All of our other theme parks, both in the United States and around the world, have been allowed to open on the strength of our proven ability to operate with responsible health and safety protocols.”

On Oct. 20, 2020, the state of California released guidelines for larger theme parks to reopen, which specified they may do so at 25% capacity if the county the park resided in was in the least restrictive tier of the state's reopening guidelines. At the time, Orange County, where Disneyland is located, was in the second-highest tier and was far from the necessary tier.

Angered by the guidelines, which would not allow the resort to reopen in the near future, Disneyland Resort President Ken Potrock slammed the guidelines as "arbitrary" and "unworkable."

"We have proven that we can responsibly reopen, with science-based health and safety protocols strictly enforced at our theme park properties around the world. Nevertheless, the State of California continues to ignore this fact, instead mandating arbitrary guidelines that it knows are unworkable and that hold us to a standard vastly different from other reopened businesses and state-operated facilities," Potrock said in a statement.

"Together with our labor unions, we want to get people back to work, but these State guidelines will keep us shuttered for the foreseeable future, forcing thousands more people out of work, leading to the inevitable closure of small family-owned businesses, and irreparably devastating the Anaheim/Southern California community."

The resort would not be allowed to reopen until April 1, 2021, after Newsom revised guidelines amid pressure to reopen the state. The Disneyland Resort reopened on April 30, 2021, and was the final pair of Disney theme parks to reopen from the initial pandemic closure.

Since its reopening, Disney's relationship with the California state government does not appear to be as adversarial.

Florida

Unlike in California, Florida's government allowed Disney to reopen its theme parks on time and did not impose any additional restrictions on the resort. However, the relationship soured in 2022 after Disney spoke out against the Florida Parental Rights in Education bill.

The bill outlawed classrooms from kindergarten through third grade from teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity and forbade schools from withholding information from parents about students' health and well-being. The bill was dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" law by opponents.

After pressure from activists within the company, then-CEO Bob Chapek spoke out publicly against the bill. After the bill was signed, Disney issued a statement saying its goal was to get the law repealed or struck down in the courts.

The day after Disney released the statement, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) said Disney's vow to get the law repealed had crossed the line.

"I think one was fundamentally dishonest, but two, I think that crossed the line," DeSantis said. "This state is governed by the interests of the people of the state of Florida. It is not based on the demands of California corporate executives. They do not run this state. They do not control this state."

Shortly after those comments, DeSantis began to work with the legislature to restructure Disney's central Florida district, which encompasses the Walt Disney World Resort. After nearly a year, DeSantis signed a piece of legislation in February 2023 to restructure the district and give the state oversight via a governor-appointed board.

Disney had remained quiet as DeSantis bashed the company and restructured its central Florida district, but the company did work to undermine the takeover.

The same day the Florida House passed the bill to restructure the district, Feb. 8, 2023, the Disney-backed board of the Reedy Creek Improvement District and Disney instituted an agreement that would undermine the legislation and effectively allow Disney to retain its control over the district.

The new agreement was discovered by the DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board in March 2023, which vowed to have the accord voided.

The agreement essentially made it so the new board of the district would be unable to make most changes without permission from Disney. It also mandated that it "shall continue until 21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III, King of England, living as of the date of this declaration."

"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," Disney said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.

DeSantis then vowed to have the agreement nullified via the board, declaring it void through one of the "plethora of legal infirmities" and through legislative action.

Shortly after the board declared the agreement void, Disney sued DeSantis and the board, alleging a "relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain State officials."

"Today’s action is the latest strike: At the governor’s bidding, the state’s oversight board has purported to 'void' publicly noticed and duly agreed development contracts, which had laid the foundation for billions of Disney’s investment dollars and thousands of jobs," according to the lawsuit. "This government action was patently retaliatory, patently anti-business, and patently unconstitutional."

In the Sunshine State, Disney's frosty relations do not appear to be relenting anytime, as the lawsuit will likely be a lengthy saga itself.

DeSantis's biggest accomplishments of the 2023 legislative session

Jack Birle

May 05, 06:30 AM May 05, 06:30 AM

Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) claimed he had a "strong mandate" to deliver on his agenda following a landslide victory in last year's gubernatorial election, which also gave him supermajorities in the state legislature.

At his direction, the Florida legislature provided him with many of his agenda items ahead of an expected presidential campaign announcement. As the state's legislative session comes to a close, here is a look at five of the agenda items DeSantis was able to get passed in the Statehouse.

FLORIDA HOUSE PASSES BILL EMPOWERING DESANTIS-APPOINTED BOARD TO REVOKE DISNEY AGREEMENT

Death penalty

DeSantis, outraged by the shooter in the Parkland school shooting avoiding the death penalty, called for legislators to amend the state's capital punishment laws from requiring a unanimous jury to put a convicted criminal to death.

"Fine, have a supermajority. But you can’t just say one person. So maybe eight out of 12 have to agree? Or something. But we can’t be in a situation where one person can just derail this,” DeSantis said at the Florida Sheriffs Association Winter Conference in January.

Shortly after DeSantis's plea, two state lawmakers filed identical bills which would change the number of jurors to recommend the death penalty from a unanimous 12 of 12 to a supermajority of eight of 12. The bill passed in both chambers and was signed into law by DeSantis last month.

“Once a defendant in a capital case is found guilty by a unanimous jury, one juror should not be able to veto a capital sentence,” DeSantis said in a statement. “I’m proud to sign legislation that will prevent families from having to endure what the Parkland families have and ensure proper justice will be served in the state of Florida.”

The law only modifies the requirement for someone to be sentenced to the death penalty after they have been convicted of a crime.

DeSantis also signed a bill that expands the death penalty to include those who commit sexual battery against children under the age of 12.

The law could prompt a legal challenge, as it goes against the 2008 Supreme Court ruling in Kennedy v. Louisiana, which argued such a punishment for the crime was a violation of the Eighth Amendment.

"The Governor is prepared to take this law all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court to overrule judicial precedents which have unjustly shielded child rapists from the death penalty and denied victims and their loved ones the opportunity to pursue ultimate justice against these most heinous criminals," DeSantis's office said in a press release.

Battle with Disney

The Florida governor further escalated his battle with Disney during the legislative session by signing into law a bill that restructured the district encompassing the Walt Disney World Resort.

The bill, which was signed into law on Feb. 27, established the new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District to replace the previous Reedy Creek Improvement District. The new district was to be governed by a board appointed by the governor.

"Allowing a corporation to control its own government is bad policy, especially when the corporation makes decisions that impact an entire region,” DeSantis said in February. “This legislation ends Disney’s self-governing status, makes Disney live under the same laws as everybody else, and ensures that Disney pays its debts and fair share of taxes.”

Nearly a month after the bill was signed, the new board discovered an agreement Disney had made with the previous board, stripping the new board of its power. DeSantis and the board vowed action to regain control over the district.

On April 17, DeSantis announced the board would seek to invalidate the agreement through one of the "plethora of legal infirmities" and that the legislature would also get involved as "a strong one-two punch."

The legislature acted against the entertainment giant with an amendment to a land use bill that would allow the board of the district to revoke the agreement and an amendment to a transportation bill subjecting Disney's monorail to state inspection. Both bills have been passed by the state legislature and are awaiting DeSantis's signature.

In response to the laws passed against the company, Disney filed a lawsuit against DeSantis alleging a "relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain state officials."

"We are unaware of any legal right that a company has to operate its own government or maintain special privileges not held by other businesses in the state," Taryn Fenske, communications director for the governor, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. "This lawsuit is yet another unfortunate example of their hope to undermine the will of the Florida voters and operate outside the bounds of the law."

The battle between DeSantis and the company, which led to Disney's central Florida district being restructured, stemmed from Disney denouncing DeSantis's push for the Parental Rights in Education Act last year.

Education

Education was a key policy topic for DeSantis in the 2022 legislative session, with the highly discussed Parental Rights in Education Act being signed into law. The law outlawed classrooms from kindergarten through third grade from teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity and forbade schools from withholding information from parents about students' health and well-being.

In the 2023 legislative session, the state legislature passed an expansion of the bill. It expanded the ban on teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity to eighth grade and said it should be taught in an age-appropriate manner after eighth grade. DeSantis is expected to sign the bill into law.

The state legislature also passed a bill that prevents state universities from using funds for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. DeSantis had proposed these reforms before the legislative session, saying the programs serve as "a political filter."

Constitutional carry

Another major policy move for DeSantis was the signing of a bill to make Florida the 26th state in the United States to have constitutional carry.

The law, which goes into effect on July 1, no longer requires citizens to obtain specific permits to carry a gun outside their residence. The law still disqualifies those prohibited from owning a firearm and felons from carrying a gun in public.

“Constitutional Carry is in the books,” DeSantis said in a statement when the bill was signed into law.

DeSantis, coming off the victory of getting constitutional carry passed, said at a press conference on Wednesday he believes the age to purchase a rifle should be lowered from 21 to 18.

"Look, I was in Iraq. I was there with 18-year-old Marines, 18-year-old soldiers that were put out in the streets of Fallujah and Ramadi and told they had to risk their lives for this country," DeSantis said.

"Then they come back after doing that," the governor continued, "and even though they were carrying a firearm the whole time, they're told you cannot exercise your Second Amendment rights here as an adult and as a veteran?"

The age to purchase a rifle in the Sunshine State was raised from 18 to 21 in 2018 after the Parkland shooting.

Abortion

DeSantis was able to get a 15-week abortion ban passed in 2022, just before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. The decision paved the way for restrictions on abortion to take effect.

Once abortion policy was delegated to states with the Dobbs decision, lawmakers moved to pass a bill that outlawed abortion after six weeks with exceptions. DeSantis then signed the law that bans abortions "once the unborn child has a detectable heartbeat," except in instances of the woman being a victim of rape, incest, or human trafficking or if the mother's life is in danger.

“We are proud to support life and family in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said in a statement after signing the law. “I applaud the legislature for passing the Heartbeat Protection Act that expands pro-life protections and provides additional resources for young mothers and families.”

While abortion was a victory for DeSantis, the 15-week law is still under legal scrutiny that could undo the six-week ban as well. A challenge to the prior law has made its way to the state's Supreme Court and could determine the constitutionality of abortion laws in the state.

The Florida Supreme Court has a conservative majority. Four of the six judges on the court were appointed by DeSantis, and the seventh slot on the court is currently vacant. DeSantis will likely gain a fifth appointee when he fills the vacancy.

DeSantis has said the legislative session has been a success, saying he and the legislature have "delivered in a really, really big way."

“We’ve delivered and delivered in a really, really big way, and it’s been a lot of work. These guys, the legislature, have worked incredibly hard, and we’ve worked hard in our office to make sure this is teed up," DeSantis said at a news conference on Thursday.