Fried: Fighting Food Deserts, Gun Loopholes, and the Onerous Clemency Process
Patronis: Uses Power to Stop Scams and Save Lives
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried stays busy. She says there is Jimmy Patronis was appointed, then elected as Florida’s Chief a lot of work to do in Florida. Among those issues is finding ways Financial Officer in 2018. He has a broad range of regulatory to deal with “food deserts” or food insecurity. Within months of responsibilities over banking and finance, insurance, while also taking office, Fried put together a pilot project in Little Haiti, pro- serving as the Fire Marshall and Treasurer. Fraud has been one of viding universal breakfast to those qualifying. Lift provided trans- the biggest problems Floridians face. Patronis has made combating portation. Governor Ron DeSantis vetoed the $100,000 state it a priority, dubbing the effort” Fraud Free Florida.” The CFO himself could have been a victim. He says he received budget appropriation. Fried did not give up, and a social security scam call. “If I got one, someone in Lift didn’t either. The program is operating with- “Right now, we the wrong frame of mind could have been ruined. This out the money, which is a minimal allocation in cannot retain is stealing,” he said. Consumer alerts and coordination is the massive state budget. Fried will come back fingerprints. with local and state law enforcement is ongoing. again this session but has moved aggressively to Patronis turned to the devastation of Hurricane address Florida’s hunger problems by promoting Such commonMichael that ripped through the panhandle leveling and supporting urban farms, food trucks, and a sense communities. “That hurricane resulted in 148,000 host of volunteer initiatives. safeguards insurance claims, $8 billion in damages and $60 milA former public defender, Fried has taken on and the lion in downed timber debris. There are no homes left the cumbersome clemency process that hears pleas reduction of in Mexico Beach, and the tax base in Bay County has from convicted felons to restore their civil rights. collapsed,” according to Patronis, who is working with The process is so expensive and difficult to navi- the renewal insurance companies, FEMA and HUD to rebuild the gate, and few undertake the effort at all. In Sep- time to five community. The deterioration of mental health is also a tember, the Commissioner wrote her colleagues on years face significant problem; a sharp increase in Baker Act comthe clemency board, asking for a hearing to review resistance, mitments resulted after the storm. the rules and regulations. As yet, no response. however, from The mental health overall and cancer insurance covThe Agriculture Commissioner also is responsible for oversight of the background checks for lawmakers and erage for Florida firefighters was an emotional issue for the CFO. He points with pride to the April passage concealed weapons permits. Loopholes in the law gun advocates of the bill that expands benefits to firefighters exposed came to light when Fried’s predecessor, Adam Put- like the to 21 types of cancer-causing chemicals in the line of nam, stopped cross-checking concealed weapon National Rifle duty. It was a major victory for firefighters who had applicants on the FBI crime database for over a Association.” fought for the coverage for years. For the upcoming year. Fried wants to close other dangerous loop— Nikki Fried 2020 session, plans continued focus on digital fraud holes. and mental health issues. “Right now, we cannot retain fingerprints,” Fried said. Such common-sense safeguards and the reduction of the renewal time to five years face resistance, however, from lawmakers and gun advocates like the National Rifle Association. As citrus greening intensifies, Fried is working toward a “come back,” which means finding workers for the processing plants. But she is also looking to alternative crops such as industrial hemp. Hemp’s potential as an environmental asset is tremendous, according to Fried. Hemp will replace paper, plastic, and expedite processing cotton. ‘There is an open market for hemp. It will provide 20-30 billion dollars for the Florida economy,” the Commissioner said. ONYX MAGAZINE 43