DeSantis signs Florida transportation bill with provision aimed at Disney’s monorail
Jack Birle
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Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signed a transportation bill that includes a provision that would make the monorail system at the Walt Disney World Resort subject to increased state oversight.
The bill, HB 1305, included a provision that does not explicitly mention the system but would make the monorail subject to state inspections.
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The provision says, “Any governmentally or privately owned fixed-guideway transportation systems operating in this state which are located within an independent special district created by local act which have boundaries within two contiguous counties” will be subject to state “minimum safety standards.”
The provision in the bill is the latest legislative action aimed at Disney. The state took over the special taxing district encompassing the Walt Disney World Resort recently as well. In recent weeks, the state passed legislation paving the way for the new DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board to revoke an agreement made by Disney and the previous Reedy Creek Improvement District board. The agreement undercut the new board’s power over the district.
In response to actions by DeSantis and the new board of the district, Disney sued them in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. The lawsuit alleges that state officials engaged in a “relentless campaign to weaponize government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain State officials.”
The lawsuit was amended on Monday to include the legislation aimed at revoking the prior agreement, and Disney is also previewing future action against monorail.
“In what has now become a familiar practice, the proposed amendment was precision-engineered to target Disney alone, just as Governor DeSantis intended and previewed—imposing state oversight over only those private monorail systems located ‘within an independent special district created by local act which have boundaries within two contiguous counties,’” the filing said.
“Disney is the only company affected by House Bill 1305,” the filing continued.
DeSantis’s office called the amendment to the lawsuit “yet another desperate attempt to maintain their special privileges” and stated that the company should “accept that it must live under the same rules as everyone else.”
“Development agreements, as creations of state law, are plainly subject to revocation by subsequently enacted state law. Disney’s latest move is yet another desperate attempt to maintain their special privileges and ignore the will of Floridians as expressed through their duly elected representatives. Disney should accept that it must live under the same rules as everyone else,” Taryn Fenske, communications director for the governor, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
Disney maintains that the action by the Florida government is “retaliatory” and says they believe there is no end in sight.
“Governor DeSantis and his allies have no apparent intent to moderate their retaliatory campaign any time soon,” the Monday filing said.
Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company, addressed the feud with the Sunshine State at the company’s earnings call on Wednesday. He noted their “terrific relationship” with the state in the past.
“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’ve had for more than 50 years. And as I mentioned on our shareholder call, we have a huge opportunity to continue to invest in Florida. I noted that our plans are to invest $17 billion over the next 10 years, which is what the state should want us to do,” Iger said.
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“We operate responsibly. We pay our fair share of taxes. We employ thousands of people and, by the way, we pay them 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?” he continued.
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.