“This Is Plainly a Matter of Retaliation” — Bob Iger Comments on Reedy Creek Drama with Gov. DeSantis

Oh, Bob Iger. He’s commented on everything from Park Passes to the Reedy Creek Improvement District drama in the past, and now he’s made MORE statements you will not want to miss.

On May 10th, 2023, Disney held its earnings call (and released its earnings report) for the second quarter of fiscal year 2023. We learned some critical information about the Company’s financial status, just how Disney+ is doing, and whether the theme parks are still raking in the dough. But we also got some important comments from Disney CEO Bob Iger on a major topic.

Disney is currently locked in a battle against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who has re-made Disney World’s Reedy Creek Improvement District into the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. Members of the new district board were chosen by Gov. DeSantis, and the board has already taken several steps to make changes within Disney World.

Recently, Disney announced a lawsuit against Gov. DeSantis and the board members, stating that the changes made were in retaliation to Disney’s comments about the Parental Rights in Education law that Florida passed in 2022. They said that this retaliation violates Disney’s right to free speech. In response, the board announced a lawsuit against Disney.

Click here to see the FULL history of the conflict between Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

In the Q2 Earnings Call of 2023, Bob Iger was asked to comment on the conflict between Disney and Gov. DeSantis. Iger stated, “Regarding Florida, I have got a few things I want to say about that.”

He first addressed the lawsuit that Disney has filed against Gov. DeSantis and the board: “I think the case that we filed last month made our position and the facts very clear and that is really that this is about one thing and one thing only — and that is retaliating against us for taking a position about pending legislation. And we believe that in us taking that position we are merely exercising our right to free speech.”

Iger went on to say, “Also this is not about special privileges or a level playing field or Disney in any way using its leverage around the state of Florida. But since there’s been a lot said about special districts and the arrangement that we have, I want to set the record straight on that too.”

He mentioned that there are approximately 2,000 special districts in Florida, including one for the Daytona Speedway and The Villages (a permanent retirement community). Iger said that most of these special districts “are established to foster investor development,” which is why Disney’s special district was created in the first place. He said, “If the goal is leveling the playing field in the uniform application of the law, then government oversight of special districts needs to occur or be applied to all special districts. ”

Iger also pointed out that the state of Florida has benefited tremendously from Disney World’s success: “While it is easy to say that the Reedy Creek special district that was established for us over 50 years ago benefited us, it is misleading to not also consider how much Disney benefited the state of Florida.”

Gov. DeSantis has accused Disney of not paying their fair share of taxes as well, which Iger refuted: “There’s a false narrative that we have been fighting to protect tax breaks as part of this. But in fact, we are the largest taxpayer in Central Florida, paying over $1.1 billion in state and local taxes last year alone. We pay more taxes, specifically more real estate taxes, as a result of that special district.”

Iger also pointed out that the conflict came about after Disney spoke against the Parental Rights in Education law: “And we all know there was no concerted effort to do anything to dismantle what was once called Reedy Creek special district until we spoke out in the legislation. So this is plainly a matter of retaliation while the rest of the Florida special districts continue operating basically as they were.”

He went on to say, “Our primary goal has always been to be able to continue to do exactly what we have been doing there, which is investing in Florida. We are proud of the tourism industry that we created and we want to continue delivering the best possible experience for guests going forward. 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 have had for more than 50 years.”

And Disney does have big investments planned for Florida. Iger said that the company has “a huge opportunity to continue to invest in Florida.” He said that Disney planned to invest $17 billion over the next 10 years, “which is what the state should want us to do.” Iger said, “We operate responsibly. We pay our fair share of taxes. We employ thousands of people and, by the way, we pay them above the minimum wage substantially above the minimum wage dictated by the state of Florida.”

The Disney CEO concluded by asking, “Does the state want us to invest more, employ more people, and pay more taxes or not?”

The Reedy Creek drama isn’t the only challenge that Iger is facing at the moment. The CEO has plenty of changes to tackle at the Walt Disney Company in the upcoming months. The Company is cutting around 7,000 jobs and $5.5 billion in spending, while also looking to invest tons of money over the next few years in Florida (which would ultimately result in the creation of 13,000 jobs there).

As part of those changes, Iger has also announced a major restructuring of certain divisions within the Walt Disney Company.

Iger will also have to face the Hulu dilemma and whether to purchase the remaining interest in the Company (so that Disney owns it 100%) or not. And he’ll have to do this all while deciding what content to “curate” for Disney’s streaming platforms and making choices that would (hopefully) get Disney+ to profitability.

On top of that, he has to face the Reedy Creek situation in Florida (and the ongoing lawsuits there), try to make sure Disney stays true to its core values, work on finding his CEO replacement, and handle other threats while listening to guest feedback and ensuring the parks keep doing well while not increasing prices to an alarming level.

Can he do it all in the 2 short years he’s meant to remain at the company (for now)? Only time will tell. We’ll keep an eye out for more updates about Iger, his plans for Disney, and what that could mean for YOU, so stay tuned for updates.

And check out our posts below for more Disney news!

What do you think about Iger’s statements? Tell us in the comments.

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