The media group first sued the Florida Division of Legislation Enforcement, the company which retains DeSantis’ journey information, over the summer time after it rebuffed the Put up over 4 separate public information requests. Florida Circuit Decide Angela Dempsey ordered FDLE to show over all “nonexempt public information” following a September court docket listening to, however the company mentioned sure information have been exempt because of the new regulation.
In late October, attorneys for the Put up filed a 25-page movement asking that Dempsey order the law-enforcement company handy over extra information, asserting that the journey information exemption was overly broad and unconstitutional. Florida voters in 1992 handed a “Sunshine modification” that ensures the general public’s entry to authorities information and open conferences.
“The exemption sweeps from public view each report relating in any method to the expenditure of hundreds of thousands of taxpayer {dollars} annually, together with essentially the most fundamental info wanted to tell the general public about what these companies are for, after they have been present, who acquired them and why,” states the movement filed by the Put up’s attorneys. “The Florida Structure prohibits such a gaping disconnect between the slender justification for an exemption and its sweeping protection.”
Dempsey, who earlier this 12 months sided with attorneys from the DeSantis administration and dominated that the governor can withhold information below a never-before-applied doctrine of “government privilege,” is scheduled to think about the Put up’s movement at a January listening to.
A Put up spokesperson mentioned the corporate doesn’t touch upon pending litigation. POLITICO is utilizing the identical regulation agency representing The Put up — Ballard Spahr — to lift questions on FDLE’s ongoing delay to adjust to public report requests made by POLITICO.
DeSantis’ travels, together with his use of state jets acquired after he turned governor as effectively his reliance on non-public planes both chartered or owned by GOP donors, have come below scrutiny, particularly after he started his marketing campaign for president.
POLITICO beforehand raised questions on flights he took throughout a e-book promotional tour shortly earlier than he formally started his marketing campaign. The Washington Put up reported in September about undisclosed flights DeSantis took between his election in 2018 and his inauguration whereas POLITICO reported final month that Florida’s former financial growth company paid practically $1.6 million for a global commerce mission. The majority of the cash was spent on two chartered jets that took the governor, together with first girl Casey DeSantis and different state officers and enterprise leaders, to stops in Japan, South Korea, Israel and England.
The Put up states that in April of this 12 months — which was earlier than the brand new regulation took impact — the information group requested FDLE for all information associated to DeSantis’ airplane journey relationship again to January 2019. After the preliminary court docket order demanding the state flip over some information, the Put up’s authorized submitting states FDLE mentioned what it will flip over and offered examples of journey information in its possession, together with memorandums regarding reimbursements paid by DeSantis’ reelection marketing campaign to be used of the state airplane.
However FDLE didn’t hand over all these information and as a substitute gave the Put up copies of annual FDLE stories that observe general spending by the company on safety and transportation prices. Within the court docket submitting, the Put up attorneys maintained the company determined to “renege on the events deal.”
The Put up’s authorized problem additionally maintains FDLE has not turned over all information associated to a request to have a look at FDLE emails relating to the Tampa Conference Middle, which was the positioning of DeSantis’ 2022 election night time social gathering. The Put up was looking for emails associated to efforts to ban hid weapons from the Conference Middle.