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The Jacksonville Civic Council has called for City Council to end its investigation into JEA, saying “ad hoc political intervention” threatens the ability of the city’s independent authorities to attract leadership and borrow money.
In a May 4 letter to Council President Kevin Carrico and Council members, the civic council noted that the JEA board has initiated internal and independent reviews in accordance with the city charter. The city’s Inspector General is examining financial questions, the letter said, and state legal authorities are also conducting reviews.
The civic council says those investigations are all in line with provisions in the charter that provide distinct roles to the independent authority boards, Council and mayor’s office that are “complementary by design” and “are meant to work in sequence, not all at once.”
“These structures have been established for exactly this kind of situation, and they should be allowed to perform their functions under the Charter and our laws,” the letter reads.
“When the reviews are complete, the City Council will have the standing and the responsibility to look at the findings and decide if changes are needed.”
The Civic Council, founded in 2010, says it comprises more than 90 CEOs in Northeast Florida and exists to promote change by “researching the city’s most pressing challenges, advocating for forward-thinking public policy, and powering strategic execution.”
Gary Chartrand, former CEO and board chair of Acosta Inc., chairs the civic council’s board. Board members include Henry Brown, CEO of Miller Electric; Marty Fiorentino, president of The Florida Group lobbying firm; Mari Kuraishi, president of the Jesse Ball duPont Fund; David Miller, co-founder of Brightline Insurance; Jim O’Learly, chairman and chief executive officer of Haskell; and Darnell Smith, retired Florida Blue executive and former chief of staff for Mayor Donna Deegan.
Among other issues, the JEA investigations involve:
• Carrico, who in mid-February attempted to replace a member of JEA’s board of directors with his supervisor at the Boys & Girls Club of Northeast Florida, describing the move in a text message as a “big favor” for a friend.
• Subsequent allegations of racist and hostile workplace behavior by JEA CEO Vickie Cavey.
• Counter allegations by Deegan that the complaints involving Cavey were part of a “smear campaign” against Cavey for not renewing a contract with lobbying firm Ballard Partners, which employs former Mayor Lenny Curry and his chief of staff, Jordan Elsbury. Deegan also suggested that Curry, Elsbury and others had pressured Cavey to renew the contract.
• Questions whether former JEA Chief of Staff Kurt Wilson acted outside his authority in approving the contract.
Carrico, Cavey and Wilson have denied inappropriate behavior, and Curry and Elsbury have said the accusations of pressuring Cavey or launching a smear campaign against her were false.
In addition to investigations by JEA, the city and State Attorney’s Office, Florida State Attorney General James Uthmeier’s office requested records involving Deegan, city Chief Administrative Officer Mike Weinstein and the Ballard Partners contract.
On March 11, Carrico established the Special Committee for Special Investigatory Committee on JEA Matters, which has held several hearings to question Wilson, former JEA board Chair Joseph DiSalvo and others.
The civic council urges City Council to drop the investigation and instead “allow established governance and legal processes to run their course.”
The letter reads:
“Jacksonville has worked hard to build a reputation for serious, professional governance. The executives and board members our authorities need to attract have choices.
“They choose cities where governance is stable and predictable, not subject to ad hoc political intervention. Financial markets notice too: our authorities’ access to and cost of capital is influenced by perceptions of governance quality. Credibility, once lost, is expensive and slow to rebuild.
“This is not a partisan matter. It is a question of respecting governance structures, preserving institutional integrity, and maintaining public confidence in the City of Jacksonville.”
In a text message, City Council member Jimmy Peluso expressed gratitude to the civic council for “standing up and advocating to end the Special Committee.”
The Civic Council is made up of the business and philanthropic leaders who make sound decisions; not for themselves, but for a better Jacksonville. And given today’s letter, they recognize how far our City Council has strayed,” he said. “This Special Committee has become an unnecessary circus that is being used to create confusion and noise. Worse yet, it has the potential to harm our credit rating and further erode public trust.”
Other Council members have also called for an end to the special committee. Council supporters of the committee say it provides oversight that the JEA board has failed to provide.
In related news, the City Council Rules Committee considered a proposal to survey current and former JEA employees about the utility’s workplace culture. The civic council letter was a topic of the discussion.
“I’m going to continue to do good government and oversight and will not be slowed down by the Civic Council or anybody else,” Council member Rory Diamond said.
Council member Michael Boylan called the committee’s investigation an “example of overreach.”
“I do understand, appreciate (that) we have investigative authority,” he said. “We do on matters of policy, on matters of practice, but not on matters of personnel.”
The committee voted 6-1 to recommend that SelectionLink Inc., a human resources firm, conduct the survey. Boylan voted no.
The proposal was contained in Ordinance 2026-0268, which set to appear before the Finance Committee on May 5 before a full Council vote.