Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[iam416]

I expect the R (probably Vance) to easily win the seat. I would have preferred Gibbons since I don't trust Vance and he strikes me as a guy who is going to shift to being a Romney type guy if he gets elected. Probably another shitty Trump endorsement. Not as bad as Oz though JFC.

I think that's almost right on all fronts. Though, I'm not sure how easily they beat Ryan. We'll see. Vance and Mandel will drfit whichever way they need to.

[THE_WIZARD_]

STFU

[Dr. Strangelove]

The stuff that went on in Transnistria yesterday is believed to have been carried out by the Russians seeking to provoke a response. Same old shit giving Putin a reason to invade Muldova.

More nuclear saber rattling by Lavarov in a staged Russian state media interview. The Russian state media is pushing the narrative that the combat in Ukraine is a proxy war between the US and Russia with a "very real" risk of a nuclear exchange. Analysts are offering that resorting to these threats is a sign that things aren't going at all well for Putin.

Evidence is building that the same problems that prevented the Russian Army from encircling Kiev and forcing a Ukrainian surrender - Putin's early strategic objective - are present in Putin's new strategic objective in Donbas. Piecemeal, poorly coordinated ground offenses with limited to know territorial gains. Russian equipment and troop losses continue to mount in these ineffective operations. British intelligence estimates 15,000 uniformed Russian soldiers have been killed. No numbers for Russian Armor but we've all seen the videos and stills. Not pretty.

Jeff, from what I read the Russians in Transnistria do not have enough strength to do a whole heck of a lot unless they secretly positioned a lot more troops there than is widely known. Currently they are pretty impossible to reinforce unless they gamble that Ukraine can't shoot down their planes or violate NATO airspace. Some think the noise there is a distraction to keep Ukrainian troops in western and southwest Ukraine from moving towards the Donbas.

[Dr. Strangelove]

FWIW, here's a new angle on the whole Reedy Creek/Disney business. This attorney thinks the state is likely to be sued by Reedy Creek bondholders (it was close to $1 Billion in debt) and the entire bill possibly found unconstitutional because the state is violating its own contractual promises. The bondholders must be paid off before the special district can be shut down. By law Orange and Osceola Counties will assume the entirety of the debt but where are THEY going to get that kind of money in a year?

The Contractual Impossibility of Unwinding Disney’s Reedy Creek (bloombergtax.com)

[Da Geezer]

All of the polls that I have seen show Rep incumbents thrashing their primary challengers. The one exception is Murkowski, who will likely lose her primary.

One can only hope.

[Da Geezer]

FWIW, here's a new angle on the whole Reedy Creek/Disney business. This attorney thinks the state is likely to be sued by Reedy Creek bondholders (it was close to $1 Billion in debt) and the entire bill possibly found unconstitutional because the state is violating its own contractual promises. The bondholders must be paid off before the special district can be shut down. By law Orange and Osceola Counties will assume the entirety of the debt but where are THEY going to get that kind of money in a year?

The Contractual Impossibility of Unwinding Disney’s Reedy Creek (bloombergtax.com)

When I read these articles, they get to the core of the matter and then you see "....". Just saying.

What the article says is that the property tax is 30 mills max. Michigan's is just under 2% of the value of the property (about 50 mills). Let's hold the hand-wringing until we find out how much property tax the Disney Corp. pays (which they are not required to pay now). Maybe all the left's breathless "...it'll raise property taxes 25% for homeowners..." is true. Maybe not. I've heard nothing from homeowners or their attorneys regarding the matter. If the counties tax Disney at a rate that at least equals the money that Disney added to the till to make Reedy Creek stay in good repair, I don't see what the problem is. The same amount of money is then being spent to do the same things to the same property. How do we have to raise taxes? OTOH, if the counties tax Disney on their personal and real property at a rate commensurate with, say, Disneyland, then I'd expect a reduction in the property tax for homeowners.

As to the theory of the bonds prohibiting the change, I'd say that the bonds would have to go into default for this to be an issue. Reedy Creek is being taken over by municipalities, so the tax-exempt status of the bonds would not be affected. Or, if the Disney bonds are not tax-exempt, then the bondholders are getting an improved deal. Again, I just don't see the harm unless your complaint is political. And let's remember why all this is happening. Disney specifically entered the political sphere in order to continue grooming K-3 students with transgender ideology. If Disney chooses politics over business, then don't be surprised if politics are being played.

[Dr. Strangelove]

When I read these articles, they get to the core of the matter and then you see "....". Just saying.

What the article says is that the property tax is 30 mills max. Michigan's is just under 2% of the value of the property (about 50 mills). Let's hold the hand-wringing until we find out how much property tax the Disney Corp. pays (which they are not required to pay now). Maybe all the left's breathless "...it'll raise property taxes 25% for homeowners..." is true. Maybe not. I've heard nothing from homeowners or their attorneys regarding the matter. If the counties tax Disney at a rate that at least equals the money that Disney added to the till to make Reedy Creek stay in good repair, I don't see what the problem is. The same amount of money is then being spent to do the same things to the same property. How do we have to raise taxes? OTOH, if the counties tax Disney on their personal and real property at a rate commensurate with, say, Disneyland, then I'd expect a reduction in the property tax for homeowners.

As to the theory of the bonds prohibiting the change, I'd say that the bonds would have to go into default for this to be an issue. Reedy Creek is being taken over by municipalities, so the tax-exempt status of the bonds would not be affected. Or, if the Disney bonds are not tax-exempt, then the bondholders are getting an improved deal. Again, I just don't see the harm unless your complaint is political. And let's remember why all this is happening. Disney specifically entered the political sphere in order to continue grooming K-3 students with transgender ideology. If Disney chooses politics over business, then don't be surprised if politics are being played.

The bolded part isn't true. From what I've read Disney has already been paying the same property taxes as anyone else in Orange and Osceola Counties. The Reedy Creek district was ON TOP of that. So by dissolving Reedy Creek, Disney is actually getting a tax cut. Where they are being harmed isn't in taxes, it's by taking away their decision making abilities. They can't fix or upgrade facilities on their own anymore. Everything regarding infratuture will have to go through the two counties.

You are suggesting that Disney be taxed at a much higher rate than any other property owner in those counties to cover the lost Reedy Creek revenue?

The article suggests the bonds must be paid off before the district can be abolished. Else the Florida legislature will violate it's own laws and possibly the state constitution. A Florida real estate/local government attorney wrote the piece so I'm guessing he's more familiar with the actual law than you or I. So if he says there's a problem, I'm inclined to believe him

[Hannibal]

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[Hannibal]

Ron Desantis.

What we thought we were getting when we voted for Trump.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Ron Desantis.

What we thought we were getting when we voted for Trump.

Well he's smarter than Trump, for sure. But a lot of his more "controversial", high profile laws are still likely to be tied up in litigation for years. His social media law, passed almost a year ago now, got slapped with an injunction almost immediately. Speaking of that, the 11th Circuit of Appeals hears arguments about it Thursday.

(Netchoice LLC et al v. Attorney General, State of Florida is the name of the case if you ever want to look for updates on it)

[Da Geezer]

The bolded part isn't true. From what I've read Disney has already been paying the same property taxes as anyone else in Orange and Osceola Counties. The Reedy Creek district was ON TOP of that. So by dissolving Reedy Creek, Disney is actually getting a tax cut. Where they are being harmed isn't in taxes, it's by taking away their decision making abilities. They can't fix or upgrade facilities on their own anymore. Everything regarding infrastructure will have to go through the two counties.

You are suggesting that Disney be taxed at a much higher rate than any other property owner in those counties to cover the lost Reedy Creek revenue?

The article suggests the bonds must be paid off before the district can be abolished. Else the Florida legislature will violate it's own laws and possibly the state constitution. A Florida real estate/local government attorney wrote the piece so I'm guessing he's more familiar with the actual law than you or I. So if he says there's a problem, I'm inclined to believe him

- As I understand it, Reedy Creek is the municipality for Disney World developments, and as a municipality, is not required to pay property taxes. That Disney chooses to pay taxes is a business decision.

- If you believe Disney is getting a tax cut, then I guess you can go on believing that. I don't believe they are "paying the same tax as everyone else". I believe they use tax receipts for Disney's benefit. If you shop property in the town of Celebration, you find that low property taxes are part of the sales pitch.

- You are correct in saying that this is about "decision-making abilities". We will see if the Florida EPA decides to enforce the Clean Water Act against Disney. If so, then Disney will owe untold amounts of money in reparations for the destruction of wetlands and habitats. The impetus of Reedy Creek was to allow Disney to purchase land for a low price and to avoid the matrix of regulations that would have made the project impossible. Now, don't misunderstand me. I think what was done in Reedy Creek was terrific and a proper use of government power to facilitate growth. But it is rich for the leftists to try to defend the "despoiling" of thousands of acres of wetlands when I have to do a wetlands determination if I piss on property I own and am trying to develop.

- I'm only suggesting that there are X amount of dollars currently being spent to achieve Y in public goods and services for the same area Z. There is no reason that less than X will be spent to accomplish Y on land Z. The dollars are all the same. Now, if you want to get into a discussion on the probability of the counties spending the dollars as efficiently as Disney, then you may have a point.

- As to the bonds, no default means no action. I presume the reason for the alleged necessity to pay off the bonds if Reedy Creek is somehow vacated is to ensure bondholders that Disney won't sell the development. For this to violate a law, to say nothing about the constitution, one would have to plead that, yes, I'm getting what I expected in terms of tax-free interest, but I want to assure myself that Disney can groom K-3 kids about transsexuality. I want to see that case being made.

[Hannibal]

Well he's smarter than Trump, for sure. But a lot of his more "controversial", high profile laws are still likely to be tied up in litigation for years. His social media law, passed almost a year ago now, got slapped with an injunction almost immediately. Speaking of that, the 11th Circuit of Appeals hears arguments about it Thursday.

(Netchoice LLC et al v. Attorney General, State of Florida is the name of the case if you ever want to look for updates on it)

Fine by me if we lose. It's better than not trying (i.e. the McCain/Romney era approach). DeSantis isn't afraid to go to war. Going to war means that you'll lose some. I'll take it.

[iam416]

Yeah, DeSantis is the one the Ds are terrified of. He’s also sort of been pumped into a giant by liberal media folks taking one unfair shot at him after another and him just totally shitting all over that garbage.

[Dr. Strangelove]

The problems caused by the decision could get resolved by next year, but they ARE problems.

*************************************

What Reedy Creek isn’t is a replacement for the counties it exists in. Disney still pays the same property taxes levied by the government and the school district that every other landowner pays. Orange County, for example, collected $40 million from the House of Mouse in 2021, Tax Collector Scott Randolph (D) said.

So, how does Reedy Creek operate its own fire and sewer departments? The special tax district status allows Disney to levy an additional tax on itself to pay for those services. The tax, amounting to $105 million per year, is illegal anywhere else in the county, along with the additional $58 million per year the company taxes itself to pay off Reedy Creek’s bond debt.

When the district is dismantled on June 1, 2023, Orange County will begin paying for those services and paying off the debt, without that special status in place.

“The moment that Reedy Creek doesn’t exist is the moment that that those taxes don’t exist,” Randolph said. “Orange County can’t just slap a new taxing district onto that area and recoup the money that was lost.”

Effectively, Disney’s loss of control also hands it a $163 million per year tax break. If the entire state of Florida was responsible for covering the hole, each taxpayer would have to cough up roughly $7.50.

However, this burden will not be shared equally. Despite zero debate or public comment, and the near-total opposition of Central Florida’s delegation to this maneuver, Orange and Osceola County taxpayers will shoulder the hit alone, leaving both counties staring at financial ruin.

End of Reedy Creek: Disney won’t pay more taxes, but you will – WFTV

[Tom W]

FTR, I just think it's great that SOMEONE is finally standing up to Disney- even if it only slows down ONE of my friend's blabbering about how many points they need for this year's pilgrimage or how "AMAZING" their cruises are. Just one, please.