Dane Eagle, who took over Florida’s beleaguered unemployment system, resigns

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The secretary of Florida’s Dept. of Economic Opportunity is resigning at the end of the month.

Dane Eagle sent a resignation letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis on Dec. 2.

“Serving in your administration has been the honor of a lifetime, and I am deeply grateful for this opportunity,” Eagle wrote in the resignation letter. “At this point in my life, however, my responsibility to my growing family is of the utmost importance.”

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Eagle was a state representative from Southwest Florida and the outgoing Florida House Majority Leader when he took on the job in September 2020.

Eagle’s tenure came amid the coronavirus pandemic and the breakdown of the state’s CONNECT unemployment system, which saw thousands of people left without benefits at a time of mass furloughs and layoffs.

This required a massive effort to bring in workers to handle applications and an effort to modernize the unemployment system.

DEO, under Eagle’s guidance, worked with News 6′s Mike Holfeld to help recover millions of dollars in unemployment benefits for people across Florida through Make Ends Meet.

DeSantis took to Twitter Monday to thank Eagle for his time in office. “Under your leadership at @FLDEO, you helped strengthen our communities and nation-leading economy,” he said.

Eagle’s final day will be Dec. 30.

If you have an unemployment issue email makeendsmeet@wkmg.com or text the words Make Ends Meet and your issue to 407-676-7428.

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