Florida Congress has agreed Action to scrap the special tax system enjoyed by Disney World’s theme park, which is located southwest of Orlando: The decision was widely seen as retaliation for the company’s criticism of the new state law, which prevents community-related issues from being taken up in schools LGBTQIA +. The bill was approved first by the Florida Senate on Wednesday and then by the House of Representatives on Thursday, and was finally signed by Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday and will go into effect on June 1, 2023.
The Walt Disney Company is the state’s most influential private company, and Disney World attracts tens of millions of tourists each year. In recent months, the company had already clashed with the local government, which has a Republican majority, when it tried to imposeCommitment to vaccination against corona virus to its employees, an initiative blocked by Governor Ron DeSantis. Now, for political and ideological reasons, it will lose the privileges that allowed it for 55 years to independently administer the vast area occupied by the complex southwest of Orlando.
The clash between Disney and the Florida government began in early March, during discussions over the informally named “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which, among other things, forbids talk of Sexual orientation and gender identity in primary schools through third grade and limits discussions of issues related to the LGBTQIA+ community from grade three and above. Initially, Disney did not take a stand against the law, but after receiving numerous criticism and pressure from its 75,000 employees in Florida, I apologised He had suspended the donations he makes each year to the country’s politicians on both sides of the political spectrum.
In late March, after DeSantis signed the law, Disney released a file press release In it, he said the measure “never should have been voted on” and backed his commitment to “defending and protecting the rights and protection of LGBT people in the Disney family,” and communities in Florida and across the country. For their part, Republicans and DeSantis accused Disney of “taking advantage of privileges that the Florida government has granted for too long,” wanting to “govern the state,” as well as following an ideological program.”I wake upA word that defines the position of those who are particularly concerned with and committed to social, gender and racial injustice. For this, the local government threatened to cancel the tax status of Disney World.
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The franchises indicated are those related to the Reedy Creek Improvement District, one of the many private areas in Florida that can independently manage their tracts. The Reedy Creek District was created in May 1967 to persuade The Walt Disney Company to build an amusement park: for more than fifty years, Disney’s control of the area has been ensured, in addition to tax credits and subsidized loans to develop services and infrastructure. which can also be used by all residents and attract tourists.
In 1967, when the neighborhood was established, there wasn’t much in the area. Today, the Disney World complex spans two counties and includes six amusement parks, as well as shopping and sports centers and 18 hotels with 24,000 rooms. based on a document Made available by Disney, the company paid more than $780 million (€722 million) in state and local taxes in 2021; According to estimates of some experts cited by The New York TimesHowever, the special system that will be abolished by the new law Permissible For Disney to save millions of dollars in taxes every year.
At the moment, it is not entirely clear what would result from the abolition of the Reddy Creek Special System (some Republican advocates heard from CNN They said they would study the details in the coming months.) Abolishing concessions could raise taxes for residents, who would have to bear at least part of the costs of road maintenance or services such as local police and waste collection in the area. Disney may request that a private scheme be reacquired, or decide to reduce investment in expanding the park.
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