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The Florida Standard: Jimmy Patronis: “Dear Disney – Please Don’t Let The Magic Sparkle Die”

Jimmy Patronis: “Dear Disney – Please Don’t Let The Magic Sparkle Die”

The Florida Standard

April 27, 2023

For full story, click HERE.

The lawsuits are flying from the happiest place on Earth. I love Disney, but their claim that the legislature and the governor are limiting their freedom of speech seems like a stretch. I don’t see anyone telling them to be quiet.

Even I have pleaded with their CEO, Bob Iger, to sit down with Governor DeSantis and come to a peaceful resolution on how they can keep growing in the Sunshine State. When have lawsuits ever helped a relationship?

The reality is that words – and actions – have consequences. When Disney decided they would publicly proclaim their intention to defeat every lawmaker who passed the Parental Rights bill in Florida, we heard them. And wouldn’t you know – when we took a closer look, Disney was benefiting from a special carve-out in laws that all other companies have to comply with – all the way down to being allowed to operate their own fire department (which my office works with). They were even inspecting the safety of their own rides. Why shouldn’t we be able to inspect them just like any other theme park ride in the state?

Seeing that these carve-outs for Disney resulted in an uneven playing field for other businesses in the state, the Legislature of Florida - duly elected representatives and senators – all took action to remove the carve-outs and make a fair set of regulations across all businesses. According to law, Disney is a city just like Tampa, Jacksonville or Destin, but they got to elect their own commissioners. That doesn’t make any sense.

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If I were Bob Iger, I would spend less time on politics and more time focused on creating high-quality content that is family friendly.

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About CFO Jimmy Patronis 
Chief Financial Officer and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis is a statewide elected official and a member of Florida’s Cabinet who oversees the Department of Financial Services. CFO Patronis works each day to fight insurance fraud, support Florida’s firefighters, and ensure the state’s finances are stable to support economic growth in the state. Follow the activities of the Department on Facebook (FLDFS) and Twitter (@FLDFS).