We recently learned that Disney entered into an agreement with the Reedy Creek Improvement District prior to the new Board taking over, which gave them great authority over land-use and transferring that land-use authority. In response, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ordered an investigation into the actions of the Reedy Creek Board.
What’s Happening:
- Disney entered into an agreement with Reedy Creek prior to the new Board taking over, which gave them great authority over land-use and transferring that land-use authority.
- The agreements passed by the former Board members on February 8th allegedly prevent the new Board from making changes to terms.
- The view of the Governor’s office is that the agreements that the prior Reedy Creek board put through on February 8th “are likely invalid,” and all legislative options are back on the table.
- This investigation, in consultation with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, will focus on the following areas:
- Reedy Creek's adherence to applicable Florida civil and criminal laws and ethics requirements.
- The qualifications of Reedy Creek’s prior Board of Supervisors and the legal validity of their actions.
- The involvement of Walt Disney World employees and agents in the execution of Reedy Creek's actions.
- Any financial gain or benefit derived by Walt Disney World as a result of Reedy Creek's actions and Reedy Creek's justification for such actions.
- All Reedy Creek board, employee, or agent communications related to RCID' s actions, including those with Walt Disney World employees and agents.
- All Reedy Creek board, employee, or agent communications related to House Bill 9-B, Reedy Creek Improvement District, Orange and Osceola Counties, and the CFTOD.
- Additionally, the Florida Attorney General’s office also sent a letter to those former members asking for documents to be turned over.
- You can read the full letter from Gov. DeSantis to Chief Inspector General of the State of Florida below:
“On February 27, 2023, I signed House Bill 9-B, Reedy Creek Improvement District, Orange, and Osceola Counties, which replaced the Disney-controlled Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID) with a new Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), and appointed five new members to the CFTOD board. Recently, the new board members informed the public that they had uncovered that, immediately before the enactment of House Bill 9-B, the RCID Board of Supervisors attempted to enter into last-minute development and restrictive covenant agreements with Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S., Inc. (Walt Disney World), designed to usurp the authority of the CFTOD board. These collusive and self-dealing arrangements aim to nullify the recently passed legislation, undercut Florida's legislative process, and defy the will of Floridians. In addition, based on initial observations of counsel, the RCID board's actions appear to suffer from serious legal infirmities, including, among other things, inadequate notice, lack of consideration, improper delegation of authority, and ethical violations, such as conflicts of interest and self-dealing.
Therefore, pursuant to Section 14.32, Florida Statutes, I formally request that you, as the Chief Inspector General of the State of Florida, in consultation with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, launch a thorough review and investigation into the actions of the RCID Board of Supervisors described above. Such investigation should include analysis of the following:
- RCID's adherence to applicable Florida civil and criminal laws and ethics requirements;
- The qualifications of RCID's prior Board of Supervisors and the legal validity of their actions; The involvement of Walt Disney World employees and agents in the execution of RCID's actions; Any financial gain or benefit derived by Walt Disney World as a result of RCID's actions and RCID's justification for such actions;
- All RCID board, employee, or agent communications related to RCID's actions, including those with Walt Disney World employees and agents; and
- All RCID board, employee, or agent communications related to House Bill 9-B, Reedy Creek Improvement District, Orange, and Osceola Counties, and the CFTOD.
Any legal or ethical violations should be referred to the appropriate authorities. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.”