Reedy Creek Improvement Act

Reedy Creek Improvement Act
Florida Legislature
Enacted byFlorida Legislature, 1967
EnactedMay 12, 1967
Signed byClaude R. Kirk, Jr.
CommencedMay 12, 1967
Date of expiryJune 1, 2023
RepealedApril 22, 2022
Repealed by
Florida Senate Bill 4C (2022)
Summary
An Act relating to the establishment, powers and functions of the Reedy Creek Improvement District; changing the name of the Reedy Creek Drainage District created under authority of Chapter 298, Florida Statutes, to the Reedy Creek Improvement District; setting forth new territorial boundaries of the District in Orange and Osceola Counties and excluding certain lands from said boundaries.
Status: Repealed

The Reedy Creek Improvement Act, otherwise known as House Bill No. 486,[1] was a law introduced and passed in the U.S. state of Florida in 1967 establishing the area surrounding the Walt Disney World Resort (the Reedy Creek Improvement District) as its own county governmental authority, which granted it the same authority and responsibilities as a county government.[2][3][4]

The bill, which was sought by and pushed for by Disney,[5] was signed into law by Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. on May 12, 1967, allowing Disney to build the infrastructure for the second park.[6] Ground breaking followed on May 30.[7] In Roy O. Disney's last act as the company's CEO in 1968, he officially named the second park Walt Disney World.[8]

The status of the law has been challenged since its passage. In 1968, the Supreme Court of Florida ruled that the law did not violate any provision of the Constitution of Florida.[9] Among the proposals that Disney lobbied to get the law passed was Walt Disney's vision of a real planned city within the property called the ''Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow" (EPCOT), which was intended to serve as a test bed for new city-living innovations. The company however eventually decided to abandon Walt's concepts for the experimental city after his death, primarily only using the district for its own commercial interests.[10]

The Florida Legislature passed a bill that would repeal the Act and abolish the Reedy Creek Improvement District. On April 22, 2022, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law repealing the Reedy Creek Improvement Act; The District dissolved June 2023.[11]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference originallaw1967 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Durke, Alison (April 1, 2022). "Here's How Florida Republicans Could Punish Disney For 'Don't Say Gay' Opposition". Forbes. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2022.
  3. ^ Faughnder, Ralph (April 15, 2022). "In Disney's DeSantis feud, echoes of a culture war that never died". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference aboutrcid was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference mannste2002 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Thomas, Bob (1994). Walt Disney – An American Original. p. 357.
  7. ^ Smith, Dave; Clark, Steven (2002). Disney – The First 100 Years (updated ed.). p. 103.
  8. ^ Thomas, Bob (1994). Walt Disney – An American Original. p. 357.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference FL Supreme Court was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference married was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference fitchdowngrade was invoked but never defined (see the help page).