JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A JEA employee who filed a whistleblower complaint against the utility for “Sunshine Law” violations related to the discussions surrounding the hiring of current CEO Vickie Cavey is calling State Attorney Melissa Nelson’s report a “B.S. cover up job.”
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The State Attorney’s office released its investigative findings on Friday and concluded the allegations were “unwarranted and unfounded.”
Action News Jax Ben Becker spoke and texted with the whistleblower on Monday and first reported in October the State Attorney’s Office would investigate if the JEA board committed any criminal violations.
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Jacksonville’s Office of Inspector General concluded in October that JEA needs to better train board members about Sunshine Law violations and that members of the board including Chairman Joe DiSalvo, John Baker, and Bobby Stein, had conversations outside of scheduled public meetings about leadership changes before and after former CEO Jay Stowe resigned.
READ: Sources: OIG investigating hiring of JEA CEO for possible state and local violations
Cavey was introduced via a motion at the board meeting in April by DiSalvo without any prior notice meeting regarding who was being considered for the position.
The State Attorney’s review said that even if there were violations, the JEA board met in publicly noticed meetings to hire Cavey, and the formal action at those meetings cured any purported violations.
“That’s a novel legal theory that you can cure sunshine violations by being public later,” the whistleblower told Becker.
The State Attorney’s report also said, “In this referral, the allegations were without merit and no referral should have been made.”
A source familiar with the OIG investigation told Becker that if that is true, where should the findings had been sent. The source also questions why the State Attorney’s Office wrote a report on the JEA matter but ignored other OIG investigations that were forwarded to the office.
There’s also the question of whether Cavey is eligible for the CEO job per city ordinance because she has no executive experience with a utility. Neither the OIG investigation nor the State Attorney’s Office report delved into that matter.
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Vickie Cavey Statement:
“JEA appreciates the thorough investigation by the State Attorney’s Office. The JEA Board recognizes the importance of the Sunshine Law and its obligations to comply. The report determined JEA board members complied with the law and that no criminal conduct occurred. The baseless allegations by a former employee cast a shadow over the good work our board and more than 2,200 employees do each and every day delivering foundational services to Northeast Florida. Maintaining the trust of our community is of utmost importance and this report could not have provided a clearer vindication.”
JEA Board Chair Joe DiSalvo Statement:
“I think it is important to note their findings reinforce the fact that each member on the JEA board of directors fully embrace transparency and Sunshine Law compliance and our commitment to remain above reproach when it comes to ethics and integrity.”
State Attorney’s Office Statement:
“We stand by our thorough investigation, factual findings, and legal analysis contained in our report.”
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