Florida House halts Hope Florida investigation

Yahoo

27-04-2025

After weeks of investigation, a state House leader said Thursday his panel is halting a probe into a foundation linked to First Lady Casey DeSantis' signature economic-assistance program, Hope Florida.
Rep. Alex Andrade, a Pensacola Republican who chairs the House Health Care Budget Subcommittee, announced the decision after the Hope Florida Foundation's lawyer, Jeff Aaron, and leaders of nonprofits that received $5 million grants from the foundation refused to appear before the panel.
Andrade has spent weeks scrutinizing the foundation's receipt of $10 million as part of a $67 million legal settlement that Centene, Florida's largest Medicaid managed-care company, reached last fall with the Agency for Health Care Administration.
After receiving the money from the settlement, the foundation gave $5 million grants to Secure Florida's Future, a nonprofit tied to the Florida Chamber of Commerce, and Save our Society from Drugs. Mark Wilson, the president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce, also serves as chairman of Secure Florida's Future. Amy Ronshausen, the executive director of the Drug Free America Foundation, also serves as executive director of Save Our Society from Drugs
The groups within days made contributions to Keep Florida Clean, a political committee headed by James Uthmeier, who was then Ron DeSantis' chief of staff and is now state attorney general. Keep Florida Clean fought a proposed constitutional amendment in November that would have allowed recreational use of marijuana.
During a brief meeting Thursday, Andrade laid out a timeline of the settlement and the roles Uthmeier and Aaron — a close ally of Uthmeier and a member of the governor's inner circle — played in steering money to the foundation and the nonprofits.
'We are not judges or prosecutors. While I am firmly convinced that James Uthmeier and Jeff Aaron engaged in a conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud, and that several parties played a role in the misuse of $10 million in Medicaid funds, we as legislators will not be the ones making the ultimate charging decisions,' said Andrade, who later told reporters he has had 'discussions' with the U.S. Department of Justice about the transactions.
Aaron lashed out at Andrade, an attorney, in a social media post after the meeting.
'Now I have more time to draft my defamation lawsuit and bar complaint. @RAlexAndradeFL should be ashamed of himself. I hope there are members of the legislature with the courage to stand up and call for this ridiculous behavior to end,' Aaron posted on X.
Jeremy Redfern, a spokesman for Uthmeier, said Andrade's accusations were baseless.
'These ridiculous allegations are false and not based on any judicial finding or evidentiary record,' Redfern said in a statement.
Andrade's conduct 'not only surpasses what should be proper decorum between Florida officials but also represents potential legal ramifications for the representative,' Redfern warned.
The House probe became a flashpoint in a feud between House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, and the governor, who has staunchly defended the Hope Florida program. The program, launched by the first lady, is rooted in the Department of Children and Families and operates across several agencies through 'Hope navigators' that help connect people and families in need with faith-based or community services. The program also operates a hotline.
The governor and Casey DeSantis held a news conference Thursday morning in St. Augustine shortly after Andrade's panel met. They were joined by Hope navigators and people who said the program had provided critical assistance to their families.
Speaking to reporters after the news conference, the governor accused unidentified House leaders and 'lefty journalists' of trying to 'impugn' the program.
'The reality is this has done an enormous amount of good. I am proud of the program, soup to nuts,' DeSantis said.
DeSantis also suggested that Casey DeSantis, who is mulling a possible run for governor next year, is being targeted because 'they view her as a threat.'
Andrade has requested numerous documents from DeSantis' office and the Agency for Health Care Administration about the Medicaid settlement agreement, the grants and other transactions. He's also asked Wilson and Ronshausen for details about the grants.
Andrade said his panel will continue to dig into the DeSantis administration's spending and other issues when lawmakers return to Tallahassee for committee meetings this fall. The 2025 legislative session is scheduled to end next week.
'I'm not a prosecutor or an FBI agent. I know now that I will never trust Gov. DeSantis again with taxpayer money, let alone Medicaid money. So that's going to frame my policymaking decisions until I'm done in public office,' he said.
Aaron told Andrade this week he was 'disappointed' that he had to decline to appear before the panel because some of the foundation's board members did not waive their attorney-client privilege with him.
In an email to Andrade early Thursday morning, Ronshausen also said she 'must decline' to appear.
'I must do so to preserve all privileges on behalf of SOS (Save our Society from Drugs), legally or otherwise,' she said.
Wilson also sent Andrade a lengthy email Thursday noting that, during a meeting earlier this month, Wilson pointed the lawmaker to public information about his nonprofit's involvement.
'Because I already have shared what I am able to share, and consistent with my obligation to maintain and uphold the rights of my organization and its donors, I do not believe a further discussion would be productive or a good use (of) the committee's time,' Wilson wrote. 'Further inquiry into these topics is likely to re-address matters implicating the constitutional rights and privileges of Secure Florida's Future.'
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