Clerk uncovers she may have wired PEDC funds to wrong acct

The Escambia County Clerk & Comptroller’s Office recently reviewed the Pensacola-Escambia Promotion & Development Commission (PEDC) and related entities. This review raises questions about entity relationships and the flow of public funds through a complex organizational structure in place since 2007. PEDC 4.29.25 Final Draft

• Background on PEDC: The Pensacola-Escambia Promotion & Development Commission was created by Florida state law (Chapter 67-1365) as a public corporation to promote economic development in Escambia County. Over the years, this entity has undergone several changes through legislative updates in 1989 and 2019, including a name change that removed “County” from its title in 2019.

The Three Entities

The review identified three distinct but related entities:

1. Pensacola-Escambia Promotion & Development Commission (PEDC-Commission) – A governmental entity with FEIN 20-8214734, created as an Industrial Development Authority and registered as a governmental special district.

2. Pensacola-Escambia County Promotion and Development Community Development Entity, LLC – A private Florida Limited Liability Company with FEIN 59-1172550, created in January 2007.

3. Community Economic Development Association of Pensacola and Escambia County, Inc. – A domestic not-for-profit corporation with FEIN 47-1954665, doing business as FloridaWest EDA.

The investigation revealed that her office wired funds payable to the governmental PEDC-Commission to accounts belonging to the private LLC. This creates a concerning situation where:

– The County contributes $600,000 annually from Local Option Sales Tax (LOST)
– The City of Pensacola contributes $175,000 annually
– These funds are deposited into the private LLC’s accounts
– The private LLC then distributes funds to Florida West EDA

The interlocal funding agreements between the County and PEDC do not mention the LLC or any delegation of PEDC’s duties, raising legal questions about this arrangement.

• FEIN Confusion: One key finding is that in 2007, the FEIN of the private LLC (59-1172550) was incorrectly set up as belonging to the governmental entity. The County’s current fiscal year Purchase Order correctly reflects the governmental entity name but uses the incorrect FEIN. This confusion extends to grant applications and external audits, which may create accountability gaps.
• Audit Concerns: While the governmental PEDC-Commission undergoes required annual external audits, the private LLC does not have such requirements. This creates a potential oversight gap for public funds flowing through the private entity.

Summary and Next Steps

The Clerk’s office would like the County Attorney to review this complex entity structure and validate whether the current flow of county funds through the private LLC and ultimately to Florida West EDA is legally appropriate.

• Great work on Clerk Pam Childer’s part. However, Inweekly recommends that an independent law firm be hired – with the Clerk’s Office and the Board of County Commissioners splitting the cost – to review all the Clerk’s wire transfers to any PEDC entity’s since 2007, examine all the entities’ books and validate whether they were audited, and develop recommendations on how to move forward.