Disney's icy relationship with the Florida government has been dominating headlines, but in recent years the company has also had a frosty relationship with the California government regarding its theme park operations.
Here is a look at the times when Disney's relationships with state governments went sour in recent years for both Florida and California.When the coronavirus pandemic swept through the U.S. in March 2020, nearly all businesses shut down, including theme parks.
On Oct. 1, 2020, Bob Iger, who was executive chairman of the Walt Disney Company at the time, abruptly resigned from Gov. Gavin Newsom's COVID-19 economic task force. Days later, Newsom said at a press conference that he was in"no hurry in putting out guidelines" for theme park reopening, adding that"we are going to be led by a health-first framework."
On Oct. 20, 2020, the state of California released guidelines for larger theme parks to reopen, which specified they may do so at 25% capacity if the county the park resided in was in the least restrictive tier of the state's reopening guidelines. At the time, Orange County, where Disneyland is located, was in the second-highest tier and was far from the necessary tier.
The resort would not be allowed to reopen until April 1, 2021, after Newsom revised guidelines amid pressure to reopen the state. The Disneyland Resort reopened on April 30, 2021, and was the final pair of Disney theme parks to reopen from the initial pandemic closure. The day after Disney released the statement, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Disney's vow to get the law repealed had crossed the line.
The same day the Florida House passed the bill to restructure the district, Feb. 8, 2023, the Disney-backed board of the Reedy Creek Improvement District and Disney instituted an agreement that would undermine the legislation and effectively allow Disney to retain its control over the district.
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