July 21, 2025

Dear Mayor Ward,

Over the last four years, the taxpayers of Gainesville have watched as your city government
has increased annual burdens on property owners by over $30 million dollars in additional
ad valorem tax collections – an increase of over 80%. Simultaneously, Gainesville’s annual
budget has expanded by nearly $90 million per year, over $600 per resident.

Having entrusted their governments with the power to tax, the citizens of Florida have a
right to expect that their elected officials will spend the collected funds responsibly, not
recklessly, and on truly necessary programs. Governor DeSantis has charged us, through
Florida’s DOGE effort, to identify and report on this type of excessive spending at the city
and municipal level. In follow-up to our July 11, 2025 letter requesting information linking
your city’s sources of revenue to its expenditures, the DOGE team has identified additional
information needed for our review.

In exercise of the Governor’s authority under the Article 4, Section 1(a) of the Florida
Constitution, the Chief Financial Officer’s authority under 2025 Florida Statutes 17.04 and
17.05, and the Office of Policy and Budget’s authority under the Laws of Florida, chapter
2025(199), Section 124, we hereby request access to your city’s physical premises, data
systems, and responsive personnel, as detailed below our signatures, on July 31, 2025 and
August 1, 2025 at the city offices and such other locations that you identify as necessary to
comply with these requests.

You may reach out to the Florida DOGE team and OPB regarding this request at 850-759-
2440 or [email protected].fl.us.

Responses to the information requests may be provided at the time of the requested
access, or may be provided electronically in advance by contacting us for access to a
secure electronic portal to which documents and other types of data may be uploaded.

You should note that financial penalties may accrue for your failure to comply with each of
the following requests for access on those dates.
Sincerely,

Eric Soskin Blaise Ingoglia Leda Kelly

Senior Advisor to the Chief Financial Officer Director, Office of Policy

Governor and DOGE and Budget
State of Florida
Team Lead
Executive Office of
Executive Office of Governor Ron DeSantis
Governor Ron DeSantis

Cc: Cynthia Curry, Gainesville City Manager

 SPECIFIC REQUESTS

For each of the following topic areas, you are requested to make available: (i) the
information and documents described; (ii) access to the data systems containing such
information and documents; and (iii) individuals with appropriate expertise to describe the
city’s activities and decisions

Topic: Procurement and contracting

Request No. 1: Policies, procedures, rules, and legal requirements for procurements or
contracts in excess of $10,000.
Request No. 2: A list of all procurements and contracts in excess of $10,000,
Request No. 3: All records of bid solicitations, vendor selections, and contract documents
for procurements or contracts responsive to Request No. 2.
Request No. 4: All information supporting the determination of the reasonableness of
pricing for procurements or contracts responsive to Request No. 2.
Request No. 5: A listing of all sole source procurements or contracts in excess of $10,000.
Request No. 6: For all sole source procurements or contracts responsive to Request No. 5,
the sole source procurement justification form and all other information supporting use of
a sole source procurement.
Request No. 7: For all sole source procurements or contracts responsive to Request No. 5,
all information supporting a determination that the pricing was fair and/or reasonable.
Request No. 8: All reviews and reports on the timeliness of work authorizations, notices to
proceed, change order approval, billing, invoicing, and payment.

Topic: Personnel Compensation

Request No. 1: The amount of regular pay, overtime pay, bonuses, and other cash
compensation for all employees from FY 19-20 to present.
Request No. 2: All rules, procedures, and guidance at the department-wide level or above
regarding promotions, step or level increases, or bonuses from FY 2019-20 to the present.
Request No. 3: A list of all decisions to provide department-wide or city-wide salary
increases or bonuses from FY 2019-2020 to the present.
Request No. 4: For all decisions responsive to Request No. 3, any analysis conducted of
the costs of such increases, alternatives, and projections of future associated costs and
how such costs would be paid.

Page 1 of 7
Request No. 5: Individuals with appropriate expertise to discuss your jurisdiction’s
performance management systems and their use in promotions, pay increases, and
bonuses.
Request No. 6: Data at the department level or above regarding the extent to which staff
meet or exceed performance targets.
Request No. 7: Policies regarding the accrual of leave and payout of leave on separation
Request No. 8: Access to the systems used for tracking leave accrual.
Request No. 9: Records of all leave payouts on separation exceeding 25% of the annual
salary of the separating individual from FY 19-20 to the present.
Request No. 10: Access to the systems used for tracking overtime.
Request No. 11: Records of all personnel recording more than 25% of their hours as
overtime.

Management Practices
Request No. 1: Records of all inventories of tangible personal property, including:
a) the date of the most recent inventory performed to date]
b) the reconciliation of that inventory to property records
c) records of disposal between inventories
d) identification of attractive personal property items

Request No. 2: For any city-owned property leased to another entity, private or public:
a) the amount of the lease
b) the terms of the lease
c) any assessment of the fair market value of the property
d) the basis and determination that such lease constitutes the best use of the
property.

Page 2 of 7
Request No. 3: For any purchase or sale of public-owned property, the most recent
appraisal made prior to such purchase or sale.
Request No. 4: A list of all city departments or components added to, removed from, or
continued on a “Management Watch” since January 1, 2023.
Request No. 5: For each item listed in the response to Request No. 4, all documents
related to the Management Watch, including:
a) The basis for the designation
b) The nature of city oversight provided during the Management Watch
c) Any evaluation or analysis of the entity’s performance regarding the issues
identified in the Management Watch
d) The basis for removal from the Management Watch

Page 3 of 7
Gainesville Regional Utilities
Request No. 1: All rate studies or utilized to determine rates since January 1, 2019.
Request No. 2: Methodology used to determine transfers of funds between the utilities
system and other government funds, including the general fund.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:
Request No. 1: All jobs with the responsibility to advance diversity, equity, inclusion, or so-
called anti-racism
Request No. 2: The current positions and activities of any person who previously had such
responsibilities and is still employed by Gainesville.
Request No. 3: The titles, dates of administration, and duration for any scheduled training
for city personnel, or made available by the city to others (including but not limited to
contractors, grant recipients, or members of the public) that included diversity, equity,
inclusion, or anti-racism as a topic or subject.
Request No. 4: The titles of any unscheduled or self-service training for city personnel, or
made available by the city to others (including but not limited to contractors, grant
recipients, or members of the public) that included diversity, equity, inclusion, or anti-
racism as a topic or subject.
Request No. 5: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, a copy of all
training materials used, provided to participants, or made available for participants to
obtain voluntarily.
Request No. 6: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, the
identities and qualifications of those conducting the training.
Request No. 7: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, the names
and positions of those attending the training.
Request No. 8: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, the
identities and qualifications of those conducting the training.
Request No. 9: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, all costs and
expenses associated with the training.
Request No. 10: For any training responsive to Request No. 3 or Request No. 4, if the
training was conducted by a contractor or other external entity, all documents related to
the qualifications, selection, and payment of such individual, contractor or entity.

Page 4 of 7
Request No. 11: Any program operated by the city on the basis of an individual’s race,
ethnicity, or gender, or targeted to a specific group based on the group’s racial, ethnic, or
gender characteristics.
Request No. 12: Any grant made by the city to an organization that operates on the basis
of, or for the benefit of, individuals of a specified race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or
gender identity other than male or female, or that targets a specific group or set of groups
based on race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.
Request No. 13: Any communication sent to all city staff, or to all staff within a city
department, between January 1, 2019 and the present, regarding diversity, equity,
inclusion, DEI, or so-called anti-racism.

Green New Deal

Request No. 1: Documentation related to the adoption of any carbon or other greenhouse
gas emissions reduction or carbon reduction target, including:
a) consideration of alternatives to any such emissions goal or target;
b) any cost-benefit analysis undertaken in support of such emissions goal or target,
including any analysis conducted or estimate made of the impact of adopting the
goal on global climate;
c) all assessments of capital and operating expenses associated with the goal or
target.
d) all actual expenses to date associated with the goal or target.
Request No. 2: If not included in the response to Request No. 1 above, any purchases or
other expenses for the lease or acquisition of battery-electric vehicles (EVs), EV
infrastructure, energy purchases associated with EV infrastructure, solar power systems,
carbon credits, carbon charges, or other emissions reduction mechanisms, and for each
such expense, provide any records, assessments, or analysis of:
a) Any alternative purchase option, including but not limited to, no-purchase options,
purchase or lease of internal combustion engine powered vehicles, power
generated from other sources;
b) any analysis of the impact of the action on global climate;
c) records of the reliability of any EV, EV infrastructure, or solar power system in use by
the city during the time period from January 1, 2019 to present;

Page 5 of 7
 d) records of all training related to the topic of climate change, battery-electric
vehicles, or solar power, including the justifications, content, and attendance
records for such training, and the location and costs (including travel costs) of such
training.

Grants
Request No. 1: Policies, procedures, rules, and legal requirements for grants made to
external entities such as NGOs, and for all such grants made since January 1, 2023:
a) records of all such grants made
b) records of all payments made pursuant to such grants
c) Procedures for monitoring of spending and performance by recipients of grants
d) all records of the monitoring and performance of such grants

Request No. 2: For all grants received by the city other than those made by a state agency,
in partnership with a state agency, or administered by a state agency:
a) the matching requirements for such grants, if any
b) the source of funding for the match
c) records of the decision to pursue such grant
d) analysis of the impact of the grant, including any assumptions made in support of
the analysis.

Transportation

Request No. 1: Since January 1, 2023, for all installations of traffic calming devices,
included but not limited to speed tables, speed humps, raised intersections, curb
extensions, and chokers, the following information:

a) the location, capital, planned lifecycle, and expected annual maintenance costs
b) the basis for the installation, including any plan, analysis, or recommendation
c) information related to the consideration of any alternatives

Request No. 2: For all traffic calming devices not included in Request No. 9, the planned
lifecycle and expected annual maintenance costs

Page 6 of 7
Homeless Services
Request No. 1: Direct spending by Gainesville on programs related to the homeless.
Request No. 2: Grants to other entities, including NGOs, related to homeless services.
Request No. 3: Gainesville’s efforts to measure the effectiveness of these programs.

Specific Individuals

As part of our request for individuals with appropriate expertise, please make available the
following individuals:

Page 7 of 7