Ron DeSantis Signs Bill Restricting Ethics Complaints

June 23, 2024 Politics, Republicans

The Tallahassee Democrat reports:

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Friday signed into law a measure prohibiting ethics investigations from being launched until they are prompted by a complaint from someone with personal knowledge of the alleged wrongdoing. The measure (SB 7014) was widely opposed by government watchdog organizations who warned it will undermine state ethics laws at both the state and local levels.

“Let’s be clear: This has never been about minimizing frivolous complaints; this is about making complaints almost impossible,” said Amy Keith, executive director of Common Cause Florida, after DeSantis’s action. “Governor DeSantis says he believes that Floridians deserve protection from corruption, but his actions today speak otherwise,” she added. Those who backed the measure said complaints have been “weaponized” against candidates.

Florida Politics reports:



Born in the Senate Ethics Committee, the legislation purportedly seeks to limit time frames for investigating ethics complaints. It also requires public complaints be based entirely on a filer’s personal knowledge of wrongdoing, which sponsors said was to discourage “frivolous” complaints.

But critics say the bill will gut ethics enforcement completely, eliminating the ability to file anonymous complaints or tips that lead to investigations and uncover legitimate wrongdoing.

Jose Arrojo, Executive Director of the Miami-Dade Ethics Commission, voiced concerns that the new law could limit means of even bringing ethics concerns to the attention of officials. “No more anonymous whistleblowers. No more employees referring information to us,” Arrojo said.

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