Topline
A federal judge threw out Disney’s lawsuit accusing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of violating its First Amendment rights on Wednesday, for now bringing to an end the company’s legal battle in federal court against DeSantis and his allies after the governor took aim at the company following its disapproval of the state’s “Parental Rights in Education” law, known by its critics as “Don’t Say Gay.”
Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom theme park.
Key Facts
Disney sued DeSantis and the board he appointed to oversee Walt Disney World’s special district—now known as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District—in federal court, alleging the governor and his allies unlawfully infringed on the company’s First Amendment rights after Disney opposed Florida’s “Parental Rights in Education” law, known by its critics as “Don’t Say Gay.”
After Disney spoke out against the policy, DeSantis and the Florida legislature enacted a law that would have dissolved the special district entirely, before backtracking and overhauling the district instead, replacing its board—which was at that time voted in by the district’s landowners, namely Disney—with a suite of DeSantis appointees.
Disney asked the court in its lawsuit to return the district to how it was before DeSantis took control—while DeSantis and the new board asked the court to throw Disney’s lawsuit out, arguing Disney’s claims its First Amendment rights were infringed on is “meritless” and the company doesn’t have standing to bring the case.
U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor, a Trump appointee, ruled Disney didn’t have standing to bring the case against DeSantis, and that it couldn’t sue his board members because they were appointed under a constitutional statute, and free-speech challenges can’t be brought “by claiming that the lawmakers who passed it acted with a constitutionally impermissible purpose.”
Disney said in a statement the case will “not end here,” adding, “If left unchallenged, this would set a dangerous precedent and give license to states to weaponize their official powers to punish the expression of political viewpoints they disagree with.”
What To Watch For
Disney and the DeSantis-appointed board are also still fighting in state court. The board countersued the company over a development agreement Disney signed with the previous special district board, which essentially stripped the board of much of its power. That case, which asks the court to formally void the agreement, is still moving forward after a judge refused Disney’s request to dismiss it in July. It’s unclear when that case could go to trial, but the next hearing in the case isn’t scheduled until March 2024.
Big Number
$40.3 billion. That’s how much Walt Disney World contributed to Florida’s economy in fiscal year 2022, according to a study by Oxford Economics in collaboration with Disney that was released in November. Disney also noted on its blog, which touted the study, that the company’s presence in Florida generates more than 250,000 jobs, and that one in every 32 jobs in Florida can be “attributed to Disney.”
Key Background
The special district that oversees Walt Disney World, previously known as Reedy Creek Improvement District, functions essentially like a municipal government, handling infrastructure like water systems, road improvements, construction permits, emergency services and waste collection. The special district has been in place since the 1960s, but only came under criticism last year, after Disney said in March 2022 that Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law “should never” have been enacted and its “goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts.” DeSantis and the GOP-controlled legislature responded by taking aim at the special district, though it backtracked on its plan to dissolve the district entirely after reports emerged that doing so could be “catastrophic” for local taxpayers. After DeSantis overhauled the board, tensions flared up again after board members discovered the existence of the development agreement, which they claimed “essentially makes Disney the government.” The agreement and related covenants gives Disney broad control over the special district through steps like allowing it to build projects without seeking approval from the district, sell development rights to other landowners and veto the appearance of buildings the special district oversees as long as they’re on Disney’s property. DeSantis and the board vowed retaliation against Disney for the agreement, and the board declared the agreement “void and unenforceable” in April—prompting Disney to file its federal lawsuit minutes later.
Further Reading
Disney V. DeSantis: Where Special District Fight Stands As Both Sides Go To Court Today (Forbes)
