Summary

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ administration redirected part of a settlement to a state-affiliated charity overseen by his wife, sending $10 million in state settlement money to Casey DeSantis’ Hope Florida charity, which was not publicly disclosed at the time.

The Herald reported “$10 million went to Hope Florida,” instead of returning to “state and federal coffers.”

The $10 million were then distributed to two nonprofits that are not required to disclose how they spend their funds, the outlet detailed. These groups later transferred $8.5 million to a political committee tied to DeSantis’ then Chief of Staff James Uthmeier, now the state attorney general.

Rep. Alex Andrade said, “this was Medicaid money that was squandered,” while DeSantis’ office claimed the “settlement was a great benefit to the state.”