A lawsuit challenging Florida’s decision to dissolve Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) next year is moving forward amid a continuing debate over whether the district equates to a tax break for Disney or a good deal for taxpayers.
The lawsuit was filed earlier this year by attorney William Sanchez on behalf of several Florida taxpayers. Sanchez is now seeking to have the case transferred from Miami-Dade County to Leon County.
“We filed an unopposed motion to transfer the case to Tallahassee,” Sanchez told the Florida Record in an email. “The judge still has not ruled on that motion. … Once it’s done, then discovery will begin, and we will address (defendants’) motion to dismiss.”
Defendants in the case include Gov. Ron DeSantis and Jim Zingale, executive director of the Florida Department of Revenue.
The plaintiffs contend that as a result of a statute requiring the Disney special services district to be dissolved by June 1 of next year, their taxes will rise. The lawsuit also characterizes the termination of the privately run special district as retaliation for Disney’s support of the LGBTQ community.
“Defendants have violated plaintiffs’ taxpayer rights … as well as plaintiffs’ 14th Amendment constitutional right to due process,” the original complaint states.
The lawsuit also argues that a large majority of financial experts have concluded that taxes will probably have to be increased in the Orlando area and perhaps the whole state as a result of the district’s likely dissolution.
That position recently gained support from David Boaz, senior fellow at the Cato Institute. In a blog post, Boaz said the Disney district equates to a method of “private provision of public goods” on Disney properties – all executed at a higher standard than what public entities could accomplish.
“Disney pays additional taxes to RCID (at the highest millage rate in the state) to cover expenditures for government-type functions like building permitting, fire and emergency medical services, a power plant, water and waste treatment, trash and recycling, and construction and maintenance of roadways and waterways,” Boaz said.
RCID also devotes millions of dollars annually to environmental practices such as ensuring water quality, he said.
“Disney’s proprietary building codes are extremely detailed and state‐of‐the‐art, offering the highest level of hurricane protection and other safety measures,” Boaz said.