Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and The Walt Disney Co. are locked in a bitter dispute over control of the outer limits of Orange and Osceola counties. On Monday, DeSantis asked the state's inspector general to determine whether Disney's move to retain control of the area is legal and if any of the company's executives were involved in the plot.
In response, Disney CEO Bob Iger called DeSantis' actions "retaliatory," "anti-business," and "anti-Florida."
For over five decades, CBS News reports, the land in Orlando encompassing Disney World has been under the governance of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which was led by a board of Disney senior executives. But, in late February, DeSantis signed a law effectively dissolving the district while establishing a new board — the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District — as its replacement.
During the company's annual shareholder meeting on Monday, Iger, according to CNBC, noted to investors that Disney has more than 75,000 employees in the state and brings around 50 million visitors to Florida every year. He also emphasized that Disney plans to spend more than $17 billion in investments at Walt Disney World over the next decade, creating around 13,000 jobs and generating even more taxes for Florida.
"Our point on this," Iger contended, "is that any action that supports those efforts simply to retaliate for a position the company took sounds not just anti-business, but it sounds anti-Florida. And I'll just leave it at that." Iger was pointing to a position the company took opposing Florida's HB 1557, or the dubbed "Don't Say Gay Bill," which limits the teaching of gender identity and sexual orientation to young children.
Last week, DeSantis' newly appointed board made accusations against the Reedy Creek board members, alleging that they signed an agreement with Disney in the past granting the company full decision-making authority over the theme park grounds while simultaneously undermining the powers of the new board.
According to DeSantis, the agreement includes a clause dating back to 1967 and is said to have "legal infirmities."