Disney would be exempt if Anaheim voters approve minimum wage ballot measure, city attorney says

Anaheim City Attorney Robert Fabela has issued his official opinion on which businesses would be subject to a ballot measure to raise resort workers’ wages,  saying the measure would no longer apply to Disney.

The initiative on the Nov. 6 ballot, known as Measure L, would require businesses in the Anaheim Resort District to pay workers at least $15 an hour starting in January –with $1 annual increases through 2022 –  if they receive a city tax subsidy (or are a tenant of, or subcontract for, a company that does). They would also have to employ at least 25 people.

Disney had two such tax deals that were inked in 2015 and 2016, but company officials canceled them in August – in the midst of a months-long campaign for higher pay by its workers’ unions.

One agreement would have given Disney an estimated $267 million in hotel room taxes over 20 years to help the company build a luxury hotel. The other canceled pact could have extended a city pledge not to add a gate tax to theme park tickets for up to 45 years, in exchange for Disney’s pledge to invest at least $1 billion in the Disneyland Resort.

In a report to the Anaheim City Council, Fabela wrote that two hotels now under construction – a 446-room J.W. Marriott and a 643-room Westin – would meet the measure’s criteria. Two others discussed by developers could also fall under the measure if it is approved by Anaheim voters in November.

Although Disney and the city still have one deal in place that dates to 1997, Fabela wrote that its provisions don’t “amount to a ‘tax rebate’ as that term would most reasonably be interpreted.”

The 1997 agreement relates to city-issued bonds that paid for improvements in the Anaheim Resort District, including the Mickey & Friends parking garage that Disney operates. Disney promised it would pay any shortfall if hotel taxes failed to cover bond-debt payments, and the city would reimburse Disney later, according to Fabela’s report.

Measure L does not define “rebate,” and Fabela concluded that the 1997 deal doesn’t provide Disney with a tax break or tax refund.

Disney officials agreed with Fabela’s assessment. They also pointed out recently signed contracts that raised most workers’ wages. In a statement, company spokeswoman Liz Jaeger said, “We are proud to have implemented a $15 minimum wage for our cast members, three years ahead of California. We also are excited by the response to Disney Aspire, our groundbreaking educational program that picks up 100 percent of the cost for hourly cast members who want to go to college or pursue a degree.”

Worker unions supporting Measure L have said they believe it still applies to Disney and they planned to say so to voters. Reached Monday, Unite Here Local 11 spokesman Austin Lynch said: “We feel confident that Disney is covered.

“Measure L goes beyond Disney. It always has. It covers anybody who gets these subsidies and any future subsidies that get handed out,” he said, adding, “We’ll be happy to enforce it in court if necessary.”