Last month, Disney reminded the public it paid $3.1 billion in state and local taxes, according to a company-commissioned economic impact study highlighting how valuable the Mouse is to Florida.
This month, Disney is suing over its local property taxes and calling them "excessive."
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts filed about a dozen lawsuits this week against the Property Appraiser as it contests the 2023 tax assessments for its four theme parks, several hotels and other properties in Central Florida. Disney wants the tax bills canceled and to get new, lower bills and be reimbursed for legal fees.
Disney, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment, has been regularly suing over its tax bills since 2015.
The Republican-controlled Disney World government board that's in a legal battle against Disney argued, "This is just the latest in Disney's decades-long campaign to avoid being a good neighbor and paying its fair share."
In the latest round of Orange County lawsuits, Disney argued, "The assessments do not represent the just value of the Subject Property as of the lien date because they exceed the market value. … Appraiser has included the value of certain intangible property in the assessments."
Disney did not provide more details about what it thinks Walt Disney World Resort should be valued at or why the company disagrees with the assessments.
Orange County Property Appraiser Amy Mercado has not been served for the lawsuits yet, said the office's General Counsel, Ana Torres, when reached for comment.
"These lawsuits are a continuation of the cases that Ms. Mercado inherited when she became Property Appraiser in 2021," Torres said.
The assessed value of the Magic Kingdom was $513.8 million, according to court documents. The Magic Kingdom is the world's No. 1 most popular theme park with an estimated 17.13 million visitors in 2022.
Orange County assessed Epcot's value was $646.2 million, while Hollywood Studios' was $526.4 million and Animal Kingdom sat at $426.2 million.
Disney is fighting its property taxes for the first time since the state installed board members to control Disney World's governing board. The board previously has threatened to get involved with the property tax litigation — against Disney.
"We're going to look at aligning the district's interest to join Osceola and Orange (counties) to fight the many lawsuits that Disney has filed to avoid paying their own ad valorem taxes,'' board Chairman Martin Garcia said at an April meeting of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, formerly Reedy Creek.
"We're also going to join the counties and yes, the School Boards, in efforts to create more funding for public schools in Central Florida. … We're going to regulate Disney like every other business in Central Florida."
Disney released an economic study last month that said The Mouse created a $40 billion impact in the state last year. The report's timing was in the middle of Disney's legal fight with Republican state leaders and during a major amusement park convention in Orlando.
"Disney is an economic catalyst to the state of Florida generating billions in economic activity, either directly, or indirectly through its supply chain and the spending of employees," said Adam Sacks, President of Tourism Economics, which did the study. "Disney is also vital to the funding of public services, as it generated taxes of $6.6 billion in 2022, including state and local taxes of $3.1 billion."
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