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The Florida Transportation Commission sent a short-list of three candidates for the secretary of transportation post about six weeks ago, and with no appointment made as of March 23, a Tallahassee source tells Coffee Talk that Gov. Rick Scott may want a new list.
Sally Patrenos, executive director of the Florida Transportation Commission, says she's also heard what she says is “just a rumor.”
Patrenos also notes that there isn't complete agreement between her office and the state attorney general's office on whether the governor may ask for a do-over. According to Patrenos, the attorney general's office says the commission can't conduct a new search. But Patrenos says, “We've always interpreted it to be an option.”
To please the governor, Coffee Talk's source says that a new list should include the name of Janet Kavinoky, executive director for transportation and infrastructure and a vice president with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. According to her bio on the chamber's website, Kavinoky is a “nationally recognized expert in transportation policy, funding, and finance ...”
In early February, the commission interviewed seven candidates, including Kavinoky, but sent three other names to Scott for interviews. The governor completed those interviews March 10, says Patrenos, and she believes the governor will make a decision the week of March 28.
The three recommended candidates are Thomas Conrecode, Collier Enterprises vice president and a former member of the commission; Gordon Goodin, a Santa Rosa county commissioner who lost a primary for reelection last August; and Ananth Prasad, a Florida Department of Transportation assistant secretary for engineering and operations. Previously, Prasad was vice president for HNTB, a frequent construction contractor for FDOT.
But Coffee Talk's source says U.S. Rep. John Mica, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, isn't a fan of Kavinoky, and that Mica made that known to at least one commissioner.
Scott, on the other hand, who has butted heads with Mica on high-speed rail, appears to favor Kavinoky. That's because our source says, “A representative from the governor's office made it plain that they wanted her to be one of the three.” Kavinoky did not respond to Coffee Talk's request for comment.
And now, with Scott recently naming two new members to the commission, with a third who could be appointed soon to fill out the nine-member board, the governor should be able to wield more influence on who makes it on a new short-list. But first he may need to have a chat with the attorney general's office.
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