Hope Florida: A timeline of how a DeSantis-backed state charity was
accused of wrongdoing
[April 28, 2025]
By KATE PAYNE
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Scrutiny of a welfare program that is the
signature initiative of Casey DeSantis, Florida's first lady is
threatening to undermine a potential run to succeed her husband as
governor, as well as his own presidential ambitions.
Lawmakers in Gov. Ron DeSantis' own party have been investigating Hope
Florida amid revelations that its foundation gave $10 million from a
state Medicaid settlement to two nonprofits. Those groups in turn gave
millions to a political committee, chaired by DeSantis’ then-chief of
staff, that campaigned against a failed referendum on recreational
marijuana.
Republican lawmakers have been grilling gubernatorial appointees and
foundation officials for weeks in combative hearings on Hope Florida, an
initiative in the state Department of Children and Families, or DCF.
DeSantis and his administration defend the initiative, saying it has
helped transition 30,000 people off government assistance and saved the
state $100 million.
“Hope Florida is a philosophy,” Casey DeSantis said Thursday at an event
in St. Augustine. “It is, how can we help people in need and do better?"
A spokesperson for DeSantis said he and the first lady “do not have a
role” in the foundation, though they have “promoted its efforts and lent
support to its mission.”
DCF and multiple people named in this story did not respond to requests
for comment.
Here's a look at Hope Florida and the probe into its foundation's
spending:
A push to reduce government dependence
SEPT. 9, 2021: Hope Florida launches, using state employees to connect
needy Floridians to community-based nonprofits and faith institutions
and weaning them off government assistance.
AUG. 25, 2023: The Hope Florida Foundation is created as a nonprofit to
support DCF in a role that is “exclusively charitable,” according to its
articles of incorporation. Under federal law, such 501(c)(3) nonprofits
must adhere to strict limits on lobbying and political campaigning.
AUGUST 2024: DCF fails to publish the foundation's tax documents, fiscal
plan, code of ethics, mission and results, as is required annually by
law.
A $10 million donation
SEPT. 27, 2024: Florida reaches a $67 million settlement in an
overbilling dispute with the Centene Corp., the state's largest Medicaid
contractor. Under the deal, Centene donates $10 million to the Hope
Florida Foundation.
OCT. 11, 2024: James Uthmeier, DeSantis' then-chief of staff, sets up a
conversation with Amy Ronshausen, executive director of the nonprofit
Save Our Society From Drugs, according to text messages obtained by The
Associated Press. At the time, Uthmeier chaired a political committee
campaigning against Amendment 3, the doomed marijuana referendum.
OCT. 13, 2024: Secure Florida's Future, a nonprofit led by the president
of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, applies to the Hope Florida
Foundation for a $5 million grant. Secure Florida's Future Chair Mark
Wilson proposes a “long-term, targeted business partner recruitment
strategy and public awareness campaign.” The application does not
specifically outline how the funds will be spent.
OCT. 14, 2024: The Hope Florida Foundation board is formally notified of
the $10 million donation, which amounts to more than 10 times what the
charity raised the previous fiscal year, according to recently released
tax documents. The board is also briefed on the $5 million grant
application from Secure Florida's Future. “This proposal has been
developed in alignment with the Department and Executive
Administration,” reads a copy of the meeting minutes obtained by AP.
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Florida first lady Casey DeSantis speaks during a Patient Freedom
news conference Wednesday, March 5, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP
Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)
Where the money went
OCT. 16, 2024: The Hope Florida Foundation wires $5 million to
Secure Florida's Future, according to Joshua Hay, chair of the
foundation's board.
OCT. 17, 2024: Secure Florida's Future donates $2 million to Keep
Florida Clean, the PAC controlled by Uthmeier, according to the
state's campaign finance database. Days later, Secure Florida's
Future sends $1.75 million more.
OCT. 18, 2024: Ronshausen messages Hope Florida Foundation attorney
Jeff Aaron about a grant application she plans to submit to the
charity, according to texts shared with AP. Aaron texts Ronshausen a
copy of the letter that was submitted days earlier by Secure
Florida’s Future.
“I’d do it like that for the same amount and let’s see what the
board agrees too,” Aaron texts.
“Just emailed it,” Ronshausen replies.
Aaron responds: “Received! Can you send me wire instructions?”
OCT. 22, 2024: The Hope Florida Foundation wires $5 million to Save
Our Society From Drugs, according to Hay.
OCT. 23, 2024: Save Our Society From Drugs donates $1.6 million to
Keep Florida Clean, followed by $3.15 million more in the following
days.
NOV. 5, 2024: The marijuana amendment is backed by a majority of
voters but falls short of the 60% threshold needed to pass.
FEB. 17, 2025: DeSantis appoints Uthmeier as state attorney general.
The probe begins
APRIL 11, 2025: The flow of funds from the Hope Florida Foundation
to the nonprofits, which in turn donated millions to Uthmeier's PAC,
is first reported by the Miami Herald and the Tampa Bay Times.
APRIL 15, 2025: Hay testifies under oath in a Florida House
subcommittee chaired by Republican Rep. Alex Andrade. He defends
Hope Florida's mission but acknowledges that “mistakes were made.”
“I cannot confirm what the funds were used for,” Hay says. “We have
no monitoring procedures.”
APRIL 16, 2025: The Hope Florida Foundation publicly releases its
tax documents and bylaws.
APRIL 22, 2025: Uthmeier tells reporters that he “wasn’t part of
securing the deal” for Centene’s donation but “everything looks
legal.”
“I’m glad for what we did,” Uthmeier says. “I’m very thankful those
groups stepped up and helped us secure a big win.”
APRIL 24, 2025: At around 8:00 a.m., Andrade announces that he is
wrapping up his committee's probe, after Aaron, Ronshausen and
Wilson decline to testify.
“I am firmly convinced that James Uthmeier and Jeff Aaron engaged in
a conspiracy to commit money laundering and wire fraud and that
several parties played a role in the misuse of $10 million in
Medicaid funds,” Andrade says. “I’ll leave the rest of the
investigation up to the FBI and Department of Justice.”
About an hour and a half later, Gov. DeSantis calls the probe a
“smear” ahead of the 2026 campaign: “Some of these people, you know,
view it as a way to attack the first lady,” he says, adding that
those people “view her as a threat.”
That evening, Republican House Speaker Daniel Perez tells reporters
that the chamber's oversight is not over and “all options are still
on the table with Hope Florida.”
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