A CFTOD Official Admits That The District Has Lost A Large Number of Employees
As part of her deposition for the ongoing legal battle between The Walt Disney Company and the Ron DeSantis-appointed Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), Erin O’Donnell, the district’s public records administrator, admitted that the district has lost a large number of employees.
Since the state takeover of the special district, 50 of the CFTOD’s 370 employees have left.
“There is a very, very, very politically motivated board, and I know we try not to acknowledge that, but that is a huge reason why a lot of people are leaving,” Erin O’Donnell said in a deposition, sections of which were filed in court last week. “Other people may have had their own issues with leadership … but a lot of people have left just due to the entire shakeup of the district.”
Disney Accuses the CFTOD of Not Providing Requested Documentation
O’Donnell’s deposition came as part of Disney’s arguments that the CFTOD has failed to provide documentation and answer the company’s questions. Because the district is dragging its feet, Disney said, the company wants a delay in the trial.
The CFTOD, Disney said, has “relied on excuses that are as inconsistent as they are unbelievable.”
Meanwhile, the district has accused Disney of going on “a fishing expedition to score political points” and “accusing the district of misbehavior when there is none.”
Since the state takeover of the special district early last year, the CFTOD has often found itself scrutinized in the public limelight.
“It’s just very hard to go through our day-to-days not hearing about all the extra news happening,” O’Donnell said. “So I think that just, in their own personal lives, and what they’ve done, or what affiliations they’re a part of, have just been extra noise, so to speak, at the district.”
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