The News Service of Florida reports lobbyists earned about $30 million during the year’s third quarter for their work in the Legislature, according to a preliminary estimate Tuesday.
Lobbying firms were required by a Monday night deadline to file reports about their compensation from July 1 through Sept. 30. A state compilation, posted online Tuesday morning, estimated the total compensation for legislative lobbying at $29.625 million.
In the past, such estimates have typically changed because of issues such reports coming in late. Also, the number is not exact because lobbying firms, in most cases, report their compensation from clients in ranges — such as $10,000 to $19,999 and $20,000 to $29,999.
Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward’s lobbyist, The Fiorentino Group, reported that it made $250,000.00 to $499,999.00, of which the City of Pensacola paid between $1 to $9999.99.
Other Florida government agencies that used The Fi0rentino Group:
| Alachua County | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| City of Jacksonville | $10,000.00 – $19,999.00 |
| Clay County | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| Jacksonville Aviation Authority | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| Jacksonville Port Authority | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| Jacksonville Transportation Authority | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| Public Defenders for the 4th Judicial Circuit | $10,000.00 – $19,999.00 |
| St. Johns County | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
| St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office | $1.00 – $9,999.00 |
The Fiorentino Group also represents Uber and CSX Transportation.
Meanwhile, Escambia County paid Bill Williams of Statecraft LLC from Defuniak Springs to lobby for the county, $1.00 – $9,999.00. Williams is a former Gulf County commissioner and former president of the Florida Counties Association. His primary focus has been RESTORE funds.