State legislators’ plan to dissolve a special district that has governed Central Florida lands owned by the Walt Disney Co. for over half a century would be “catastrophic” for Orange County’s budget and taxpayers, who’d shoulder the burden of providing public safety and other services for the entertainment giant’s properties, Mayor Jerry Demings said Thursday.
He said Disney foots 100% of the bills for its law enforcement services, provided through a contract with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office; Reedy Creek Fire Services, which delivers fire-rescue protection from a station in Lake Buena Vista; and its 911 call center.
“If that district goes away and they no longer pay for those public safety costs, then it has to fall to the county’s budgets. That’s a net sum loss for the rest of the taxpayers of Orange County,” Demings said at a press briefing at Full Sail University. where he stumped for a sales tax increase for transportation. “It will put an undue burden on the rest of the taxpayers in Orange County to fill that gap.”
He said the measure, introduced by Republican lawmakers, was “obvious… political retribution at play.” The House voted 70-38 Thursday to end Reedy Creek and five other special districts created before 1968, the bill’s threshold for areas to be considered for dissolution.
The bill’s next stop: the governor’s desk.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, often at odds with Demings, a Democrat, during the COVID-19 pandemic over face-masking and vaccination mandates, also has feuded with Disney over Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law, which critics call the “don’t say gay” law.
Disney CEO Bob Chapek criticized the law, saying the company would work to see the law repealed and oppose similar legislation in other states.
During the briefing, Demings praised Disney for creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and helping to make Orlando and Florida a place where people want to live. He said Disney companies had been “great community partners” for more than 50 years.
Demings said the county’s constitutional officers were helping to evaluate the potential impact of the bill.
“Until we have all of the specifics, it’s hard to say what the specific answers or impacts will be,” he said. “We’re like everybody else trying to understand what the Legislature truly is trying to do in this case. I believe they have not adequately contemplated the ramifications of what they have proposed.”
The district was created by a 1967 state law that allowed Walt Disney World to establish its own independent government to handle fire safety and other functions. If DeSantis signs the proposed bill, the district would be dissolved June 1, 2023, though all could eventually be reestablished.
Orange and Osceola counties would be impacted when Reedy Creek is dissolved.
Osceola County officials were uncertain of its fiscal responsibilities when the district dissolves in 2023. It will begin an analysis to prepare for possible impacts, spokesperson Krystal Diaz said.
“Over the many years, Disney has been a strong community partner and we expect that relationship to continue as we work together for a transition plan,” she said in an email.
While the bill’s impact is uncertain, lawmakers rejected Wednesday an amendment that would have required the Legislature’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to study the impact of dissolving Reedy Creek and the other special improvement districts.
On Twitter, Orange County Tax Collector Scott Randolph pointed out in a series of posts that Reedy Creek is an independent taxing district, which means “it elects a board to set a millage rate inside its boundary—in this case, all land owned by Disney. So Disney taxes itself to operate its own power plant, maintain roads, fire dept., etc.”
He tweeted that Orange County would take on $163 million per year in debt obligations.
That would be a heavy load, Demings said.
“We already have significant pressure on our budget to provide for public safety and other health and social services,” he said.
Demings said those expenses are funded through property tax revenue, and Disney pays the most of any property taxpayer.
“The devils in the details and we quite simply today do not have the details,” he said.
shudak@orlandosentinel.com
