The Walt Disney World Resort is playing host to much smaller crowds this summer than in previous years. Theme park experts say families are staying away due to record heat, rising costs, and their decision to visit at other times of the year. After two years of strong post-pandemic numbers, Disney’s summer numbers are dropping,…

The Walt Disney Company asked a Florida court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the board of supervisors appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to oversee Walt Disney World’s theme park operations. DeSantis took over Disney World’s self-governing district through legislation passed by the Florida legislature before appointing new overseers to run it. The entertainment company’s…

The newly appointed members of Walt Disney World’s new governing board met for the first time on March 8, pledging to make “a lot of changes” in the way the iconic entertainment resort will be overseen in the future. “You will see a lot of changes that are going to occur, and many of those…

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis consigned Disney World’s self-governing status to the historical dustbin on Feb. 27 as he signed the bill setting up a new board to govern the Central Florida property, one of the world’s premier tourist destinations. DeSantis staged the bill with a backdrop not of the Magic Kingdom, but of a big…

In a special legislative session this week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will seek to dissolve Disney World’s special status, permanently ending “the corporate kingdom” and bringing it under state control. According to DeSantis’s office, the legislation will end Disney’s self-governing status and impose a state-controlled, term-limited board appointed by the governor to run what’s now…

Commentary​ Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving forward with his plan to remove the special legal status that has allowed Walt Disney World to operate for more than 50 years as an autonomous government entity, free of nearly all state and local oversight and with the power to levy its own tax-free municipal bonds….

Disney theme parks in the United States recently changed their “Fairy Godmothers in Training” program title to “Fairy Godmother’s Apprentices” to be more gender-neutral. At “Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique” locations in the parks, visiting children have been traditionally dressed and styled by the “fairy godmothers” as their favorite Disney characters. But now these employees will have…

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over the dissolution of the Walt Disney Company’s Reedy Creek Improvement District, a 25,000-acre self-governing area in the state’s Orange and Osceola counties. The lawsuit was filed by William Sanchez last week on behalf of three Orange and Osceola County residents. Sanchez is…

The Reedy Creek Improvement District’s (RCID) Board of Supervisors meets on April 27 for its regularly scheduled monthly meeting at the district’s offices on Hotel Plaza Boulevard in Lake Buena Vista. On the agenda is an appointment, an amended work order, and a proposed solar power purchase agreement—typical stuff for a special district accorded most…

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on April 19 formally asked state lawmakers to take up eliminating Walt Disney World’s self-governing status during a special session that was set to start on Monday. DeSantis, a Republican, announced the move in a proclamation (pdf), telling members of the Florida House of Representatives and Senate that the state’s updated…