Disney and DeSantis tourism board settle long-running dispute sparked by 'Don't Say Gay' bill

Cinderella Castle and Main Street, U.S.A. are seen at Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP). Inset: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis answers questions from the media, March 7, 2023, at the state Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Sears, File)

It was a happy ending — of sorts — for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board after the parties agreed on Wednesday to settle a long-running dispute sparked by Disney’s opposition to Florida’s so-called “ Don’t Say Gay ” legislation.

As Law&Crime previously reported, the controversial law expressly prohibits “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in certain grade levels or in a specified manner,” and says that “[c]lassroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”

Litigation between DeSantis and the tourism board started in 2022. That year, before DeSantis signed the controversial so-called “parental rights” bill into law, Disney’s then-CEO Bob Chapek openly opposed it. DeSantis responded by signing a bill that took control of a 25,000-acre area known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.

The RCID is where Disney World’s parks and resorts are based. The law put control of Reedy Creek squarely in the hands of the oversight board. Notably, the board was populated only by officials DeSantis hand-selected.

What ensued was a series of fraught legal battles where the board vowed to raise taxes and other fees and Disney sued, claiming DeSantis was trying to run roughshod over the First Amendment and treated Reedy Creek as his “ fiefdom .” Though Disney claimed in a First Amendment lawsuit that the bill had infringed on its ability to conduct business now and in the future, the claim was dismissed .

But with the reportedly unanimous settlement struck on Wednesday, according to CNN , Disney will drop allegations that the board improperly withheld public records requested by the entertainment conglomerate. The records Disney sought were expected to be used at the now-moot June trial. Disney had hoped to use those records in order to show disparate treatment or operations once the special district’s oversight board changed.

Any previous legal actions taken by Reedy Creek before DeSantis stepped in are now considered null and void.

Neither party will reportedly have to admit any fault or liability in any of the actions between them.

In a statement Wednesday, Jeff Vahle, president of the Walt Disney World Resort said the company was “pleased to put an end to all litigation pending in state court in Florida between Disney and the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.”

A representative for DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Law&Crime on Wednesday.

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