TALLAHASSEE– Last Thursday, the State of Florida Division of Administrative Hearings issued public notice of a scheduled administrative hearing for case NO.22-000925EC, RE: Vanessa Baugh. The hearing will be held via Zoom conference on August 9 through 11, 2022, at 9:30 a.m.
The case is in relation to a December 2021 order by the Florida Ethics Commission finding probable cause in complaints alleging that Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh may have violated state ethics laws for her role in a state-run pop-up vaccine site located in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.
Administrative Law Judge Linzie F. Bogan will oversee the proceedings from a physical location in Tallahassee.
Florida’s Commission on Ethics is an independent nine-member commission formed in 1974 to review complaints filed under the statutory Code of Ethics and to answer questions from public officials about potential conflicts of interest through its issuance of advisory opinions.
In its December 2021 order, Florida’s Commission on Ethics pointed to two sections of Florida statute as portions reflecting probable ethics violations by the commissioner.
The commission found that there was probable cause to believe that Article II, Section 8(g)(2) of the Florida Constitution was violated by Commissioner Baugh when she put her name at the top of a list of recipients to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. The Commission also found that based on the preliminary investigation of the complaints and on the second amended recommendation of the Commission's Advocate, there was probable cause to believe that Baugh also violated Section 112.313(6) of Florida Statutes by using–or attempting to use–her public position and/or resources in order to deviate from Manatee County's COVID-19 random lottery pool for vaccination appointments to restrict access to the State-provided vaccines to only constituents of her own district.
Having found probable cause, the Commission on Ethics issued a formal notice for a future administrative evidentiary hearing, date unknown at the time.
The evidentiary hearing has been publicly noticed, and related information is available on the State’s DOAH website. Available information includes a Zoom link and instructions for hearing participants.
The proceedings will be accessible via the internet, cell phone, or landline. For more information on the scheduled hearing and accessibility, please visit here.
A related filing in the case provides notice of pre-trial instructions. Per order of DOAH, counsel for all parties will meet no later than 15 days prior to the date of hearing. During such time discussion of a potential settlement, hearing stipulations, and examination of exhibits, evidence, and submission of witness lists will be entered by both parties.
While the evidentiary hearing is scheduled to proceed in early August, the respondent (Baugh) may avoid the hearing by resolving the complaint through a stipulated settlement. A potential settlement would be entered into with the Advocate for the Attorney General, Elizabeth A. Miller, and would be subject to approval by Florida’s Commission on Ethics.
Should the hearing proceed–without an approved settlement agreement–at its conclusion Administrative Law Judge Bogan will transmit his recommended order to the Commission on Ethics. The COE will then meet to consider Bogan’s recommendation and take final action in the case.
To view all public filings related to case NO.22-000925EC, RE: Vanessa Baugh on the DOAH website, visit here.
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