Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' affordable housing director has been suspended amid an inspector general investigation, jeopardizing the agency's efforts to assign hundreds of millions of dollars.
The individual in question is the Florida Housing Finance Corp. executive director, Mike DiNapoli, who was placed on leave last month. The decision was made less than six months after the Republican governor chose him to lead the Florida organization because of a filing accusing him of discrimination.
Ron DeSantis Suspends Affordable Housing Director
A spokesperson for the corporation has not responded to requests for comments regarding the situation, including the reasons for suspending DiNapoli. Additionally, DiNapoli himself did not respond to text messages and calls that sought comments regarding the situation.
The Florida governor chose the 54-year-old to lead the organization in February as state lawmakers were preparing to assign $711 million to the Florida Housing Finance Corp. in an attempt to curb the state's affordable housing crisis.
DiNapoli came in after the abrupt resignation of the agency's previous director, Harold "Trey" Price, who was first appointed in 2017 when the state governor was Rick Scott, as per the Tampa Bay Times.
Florida lawmakers established the agency over four decades ago to manage hundreds of millions of dollars of state and federal housing funds. The corporation is responsible for providing low-interest loans to developers of affordable housing projects, issuing bonds, and supporting new homebuyers using down payment assistance and low-interest home loans.
A board of directors appointed by the state governor oversees the corporation's operations. Before DiNapoli's run as DeSantis' affordable housing director, he oversaw the state's emergency bridge loan program as part of the Department of Economic Opportunity.
Since DiNapoli took up the position, however, the agency has seen a wave of departures of officials. He previously fired two high-level officials, including the corporation's longtime general counsel, Hugh Brown, and the liaison to the board, Sheila Freaney.
The development is another blow to DeSantis as he faces various issues. The biggest individual donor to a group supporting the Florida governor's presidential campaign, hotel entrepreneur Robert Bigelow, said that he would not donate anymore unless the Republican can attract new major donors and takes on a more moderate approach, according to Reuters.
Florida Governor's Struggles
Bigelow's current stance underscores donor concerns regarding DeSantis' struggling presidential campaign. This is because the Florida governor has been unable to challenge former United States President Donald Trump's massive lead in the 2024 GOP primary race.
The entrepreneur, who previously donated $20 million to the pro-DeSantis "Never Back Down" super PAC, said that the governor needs to shift to attract moderates. He argues that the Republicans would lose otherwise.
DeSantis also recently dismissed Trump's claims regarding the 2020 election being stolen as false. The Florida governor's comments went further than he typically answers when asked about the Republican businessman's political loss.
The governor has repeatedly tried to hedge and refused to acknowledge that the election was conducted fairly. However, in his recent remarks, without identifying Trump himself, DeSantis said that such theories were "unsubstantiated," said the New York Times.
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