Fabrizio Gowdy
Correspondent
At its Oct. 21 meeting, the Gadsden County Board of County Commissioners voted unanimously to search for a new lobbying firm to represent the board’s interests, choosing not to extend its agreement with Tallahassee-based Ballard Partners.
Commissioners say decision was driven by Ballard’s failure to send a representative to the meeting or appear via Zoom, which irked Commissioner Shawn Wood.
“I’m not giving $90,000 to someone that didn’t show up,” said Wood. “I make a motion that we look for another [lobbying firm].”
Wood’s motion was quickly seconded without discussion and unanimously adopted by the board.
The board first hired Ballard in November 2022. With the current contract expiring on Nov. 14, 2025, the board had the option to extend the contract for another year at a rate of $7,500 per month.
Per the agreement, Ballard was responsible for advocating Gadsden County’s interests at the federal level by securing funding, monitoring legislation, arranging meetings with decision-makers, and advising on policy strategies.
According to Open Secrets, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit that tracks money in politics, Ballard currently has 272 clients worth a total amount of $33,930,000. The firm did not respond to a request for comment.
In Other Business
- The board begrudgingly approved a measure that brings the county into compliance with Florida Senate Bill 784, which expedites development approvals and streamlines the platting and replatting process by shifting approval authority from elected governing bodies to designated administrative officials within local governments. The board designated the interim county administrator as Gadsden County’s official responsible, but several members noted they only did so because it was the opinion of the interim county attorney that they were required to appoint somebody.
- The board added $594,428 to the sheriff’s law enforcement budget for 2025-2026 to cover employee raises, IT software, and more vehicles.
- Interim County Administrator Reginald James announced the first phase of his county vehicle reduction plan is underway, which involves selling high-end vehicles like Ford Expeditions and Chevy Tahoes back to Enterprise.
The next county commission meeting will take place Nov. 4 at 6 p.m.