Earlier this year, The Florida Legislature passed HB 1365, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed it. The bill essentially criminalized homelessness by making it illegal to sleep on public property throughout the state.
When Governor DeSantis signed the law, he claimed that it would restore “law and order” in the state and that homeless people would receive the support they needed to find affordable housing. However, with some affordable housing options on the way, it doesn’t solve homelessness now.
When the Florida Legislature passed its original law, there was concern that it would directly impact Walt Disney World Resort cast members. The exact number of cast members who are homeless is unknown, but some estimates put the amount at around 10 percent.
After the new law preventing homelessness in the state went into effect, a similar law in California was brought before the Supreme Court and upheld by the court 6-3. With the Supreme Court’s backing, Florida could remove any homeless person from public spaces.
Now, Orange County, home to Disney World, under considerable pressure from the state, has created a law that would criminalize homelessness in the county. The Orange County Commission voted 4-2 to make it illegal to sleep on public property, following a similar path as the state legislature.
However, Orange County felt considerable pressure to follow the state’s law. Under HB 1365, as of January 1, citizens, business owners, or the State Attorney General could sue cities and towns that did not enforce a homeless encampment ban.
Commissioner Kelly Semrad, who was one of two to vote against the bill, said:
When we’re faced with really difficult decisions, I gotta use the people as my guiding star. I cannot vote for something that complies with what I look at as [cruel] and unusual punishment when people have nowhere else to go, and we are living in the nation’s lowest-paid economy.
This decision will directly impact Disney World cast members who are struggling financially. Despite winning a well-deserved raise last year, inflation and a spike in housing costs in Central Florida have all but erased any gains cast members have made in the past year.
With Orange and other neighboring counties outlawing sleeping in public spaces and sleeping in their cars, cast members will have to find new places to live while still working at Disney World. With Disney’s affordable housing still years away, there is very little relief in site for those who make the magic at Disney World.
The post Under Pressure From DeSantis, Orange County Passes Law Hurting Some Disney World Cast Members appeared first on Inside the Magic.
