Politicians and Nonprofits: Examples from Florida and Maryland

The relationships of politicians and nonprofits is often fraught, both because the extra scrutiny given to such relationships when government funds are at issue and because of the possibility of abuse of political power relating to such funds. Two recent examples highlight these risks.

First, and as previously covered in this space, is the relationship of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis with the Hope Florida Foundation. The latest press report indicates that at the time of the $10 million transfer from a Medicaid overbilling settlement to the Foundation, lawyers for both the party paying the settlement and the Florida Attorney General’s office tried to distance their clients from the transfer. A criminal investigation by prosecutors in Tallahassee is ongoing. Additional coverage: Orlando SentinelPolitico.

Second, is the relationship of Baltimore, Maryland Mayor Brandon Scott with Baltimore’s Promise, a nonprofit that administers the Summer Funding Collaborative (SFC) program. According to a recent Baltimore Sun article (subscription required), Mayor Scott serves on the board of Baltimore’s Promise, and $2 million in city funds flowed from the Baltimore Children and Youth Fund to the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development and from there to the SFC program. The article raises concerns about the transparency of this funding arrangement as well as possible conflicts of interest and waste as the funds flowed through multiple entities.

Lloyd Mayer