United States

Inspector general cites 9 Florida nonprofits for ‘excessive’ executive salaries

(The Center Square) – Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered Florida Inspector General Melinda Miguel last February to review all state agency relationships with “partnered nonprofits,” particularly in reference to executive compensation.

DeSantis launched the probe after revelations dating back to 2018 from the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times that the state’s domestic violence contractor, the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence (FCADV), was paying CEO Tiffany Carr $7.5 million over a three-year span.

In a letter sent Monday to DeSantis, Miguel said the preliminary results of the investigation report, due June 30, indicate excessive executive compensation in at least 12 nonprofits contracted by the state to provide services.

Miguel said nine nonprofit organizations under contract with the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) are spending millions of dollars compensating executives above the limits allowed by state law, amounting to more than $3 million annually.

Three Florida Department of Education (DOE) partnered nonprofits contracted by the Office of Early Learning submitted what were deemed excessive salary requests and subsequently were disallowed, the OIG reported.

There are 194 nonprofits contracted by state agencies to deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in services annually, according to the OIG. The report identifies one or more audit findings that require corrective action at 39 of 169 nonprofits that provided documents to the OIG.

All nonprofits contracting with the state must comply with the Florida Single Audit Act, which imposes “accountability requirements for state financial assistance provided to nonstate entities.”

State law also requires community-based care entities not pay employees “in excess of 150 percent of the annual salary paid to the secretary of the DCF from state-appropriated funds, including state-appropriated federal funds” in base pay or base pay combined with any bonus or incentive payments.

The House Public Integrity & Ethics Committee launched an investigation last spring into alleged misappropriation of funds and private donations by FCADV’s leadership, most notably Carr.

That investigation, chaired by Rep. Tom Leek, R-Ormond Beach, compelled lawmakers to unanimously pass House Bill 1087, which authorized DCF to hire other nonprofits after DeSantis ordered all FCADV contracts severed.

Carr was among 13 former and then-current FCADV board members and staff subpoenaed to testify before the House panel in February and March to answer questions about how the nonprofit spent its $50 million in annual budgets.

FCADV officers Patricia Duarte and Sandra Barnett testified that Carr funneled “unearned money” – unspent DCF grants – into paid-time-off (PTO) days for her and select staff.

When Carr resigned from her $761,000-a-year position in November 2019, Carr cashed in 465 PTO days from 2017 and 620 from 2018 for nearly $4.3 million, meaning she was paid about $7.5 million during a three-year span.

Carr dodged subpoenas, even one served via Twitter, to avoid testifying before the House panel and has remained silent while legal actions against her matriculate through the courts.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody secured a court order in March to freeze $1.5 million in FCADV assets, from which $1 million was used to pay claims against the coalition filed by DCF and the state’s 42 certified domestic violence centers.

DCF Secretary Chad Poppell told the Senate Children, Families and Elder Affairs Committee on Jan. 11 that the state’s domestic violence services have “stabilized.”

“This is another case where the department got too far away from what was happening,’’ Poppell said, noting FCADV flew below DCF’s radar because it “stayed within their salary budget, but they left 40% of their spots vacant and that created a pool of money to move around.”

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