The shakeup of Walt Disney World's governing district more than a year after by Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointees continued Wednesday with the departure of its board chairman who had been highly critical of Disney.
Martin Garcia's departure as chairman of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District is coming a week after the district's administrator, Glen Gilzean, by DeSantis as interim elections supervisor in Orange County, the home of Orlando, at half his district's $400,000 salary.
Martin didn't respond to an email seeking comment on Wednesday.
In an email, DeSantis' communications director, Bryan Griffin, thanked Garcia for 鈥渟uccessfully navigating鈥� the transition of the district from a governing body controlled by Disney supporters to the current iteration controlled by DeSantis appointees.
Garcia 鈥渄eveloped a new district focused on transparency and the elimination of corporate welfare,鈥� Griffin said.
The Republican governor also recommended that a former senior advisor, Stephanie Kopelousos, be named the district's new administrator. Kopelousos was a director of legislative affairs for DeSantis and previously served in other administrations of Florida governors.
鈥淲e are glad to see her step into this leadership role as the District embarks upon the next chapter in its efforts to ensure an even and transparent playing field for the businesses that operate in Central Florida,鈥� Griffin said.
Since the takeover last year, the district has faced an exodus of experienced staffers and lots of litigation. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters for most of its five decades.
A fight between DeSantis and Disney began in 2022 after the company, facing , publicly opposed a state law that critics have called 鈥淒on鈥檛 Say Gay.鈥� The 2022 law banned classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades and was championed by DeSantis, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches until he this year.
As punishment for opposition to the law, DeSantis took over the district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors.
Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the company鈥檚 free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge that lawsuit in January. Disney has appealed.
A separate lawsuit over who controls the district is still pending in state court in Orlando.
over the 鈥淒on't Say Gay鈥� legislation was reached this week between Florida education officials and civil rights groups that had challenged the constitutionality of the law on behalf of parents, students and others. The law remains intact, but the deal spells out that the Florida law doesn鈥檛 prohibit discussing LGBTQ+ people, prevent anti-bullying rules based on sexual orientation and gender identity, or disallow Gay-Straight Alliance groups.
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