DeSantis’ Disney Board Forced to Cancel Contract After Possible Ethics Violations

On February 27, 2023, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis officially dismantled the Reedy Creek Improvement District  — the board oversaw Walt Disney World Resort. He placed it with his own hand-picked board, none of whom had any experience in the theme park industry. The move was a controversial one and even landed the governor in hot water when Walt Disney World officially filed a lawsuit against him in April.

Since DeSantis loyalists have taken over, Reedy Creek has been renamed the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, and a number of questionable and unpopular things have happened. First and foremost, the CFTOD took away the perks for those who worked for the district. District employees used to receive free admission to Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, as well as discounts on hotel stays, food, merchandise, and more.

Instead, they gave them a $1,000 stipend, which, when compared to the cost of their benefits, is a pay cut.

Related: “Unqualified and Incompetent,” Disney District Employees Quitting En Masse After DeSantis Takeover

Now, the board is finding itself embroiled in a possible ethics violation.

Because the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District is a special district, it has its own emergency system. Earlier this month, the board decided that it wanted to update its system and offered a $242,500 no-bid contract to Figgers Communication. The “no-bid contract” meant that no other communications company could try to get it.

While that might not seem incredibly unethical on its surface, you don’t have to dig deep to find the problem.

Figgers Communication was founded by Freddie Figgers. Figgers briefly served on the Florida Commission on Ethics alongside Glen Gilzean. Gilzean is now the administrator of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. Both Figgers and Gilzean were appointed to the Commission on Ethics by Governor DeSantis.

In a statement to the Orlando Sentinel, the board defended its decision to not have a bidding war. However, they would rescind the contract and allow bidding, at Figgers request.

“They [Figgers Communication] do not wish to continue under the current atmosphere and wish to participate in a bidding process instead,” Matthew Oberly, the district’s director of external affairs, said Tuesday. “Which is unfortunate as now we will have to start over.”

In a letter to the district on Monday, Figgers requested an open bidding process to “err on the side of caution” and ensure the “best value” for taxpayers.

“We welcome the opportunity for an open bidding process and are confident that it will reveal that our proposal to implement the 911 wireless and VOIP emergency services was very reasonable, with no intention of taking advantage of the District,” Figgers wrote.

The board has also said that the no-bid contract met all legal requirements. However, experts disagree.

According to Ben Wilcox, the research director at Integrity Florida, said that a no-contract bid should only be offered when a “compelling reason exists.”

“It’s always better to have a bidding process,” Wilcox said. “I don’t know if this is the only company that could provide these services. You can’t find that out unless you put it out there for a competitive bidding process.”

Adding to the irony is that, when DeSantis and the state of Florida took over Reedy Creek, he vowed to end no-bid contracts.

DeSantis and his team have not commented on the no-bid contract or why they offered it when DeSantis himself expressly stated that the CFTOD would not do that.

This is not the first time that the board has faced ethical issues.

In August, it was made reported that Glen Gilzean was planning on being the administrator of the CFTOD while retaining his position on Florida’s Commission on Ethics. He consulted with a lawyer to ask if he could legally and ethically stay in both positions. The lawyer was very clear — legally he could not hold both positions.

Gilzean resigned from Florida’s Commission on Ethics on August 22. He will continue to be the administrator of the CFTOD, for which he will be paid $400,000 per year.

Do you think it was unethical for the board to issue a no-bid contract to a DeSantis ally? Let us know in the comments.