ORLANDO, Fla. – Orange County commissioners on Tuesday will discuss what, if anything, can be done regarding $4 million in surplus funds that the supervisor of elections spent on a scholarship and training programs.
Contracts obtained by News 6 last week showed Elections Supervisor Glen Gilzean used $2.1 million to set up a scholarship at Valencia College for students from Jones or Evans high schools pursuing degrees in cybersecurity and network engineering.
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He also used $1.9 million to pay for three training programs at CareerSource Central Florida.
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The contracts were dated days before the end of the fiscal year 2023-2024 budget. Both contracts talked about linking the money to encouraging voter registration and civic engagement.
However, Orange County’s commission approved that budget, and last week Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said he was concerned that the money was not used to shore up polling places for the November election.
“I can tell you that voters have said to me, that through this last election cycle, they did not feel that everything had been done because they were waiting in long lines and not enough locations,” Demings said. “I believe there was an opportunity for Mr. Gilzean to use part of these unused funds that he has used for other purposes outside the scope of what a supervisor of elections would normally do.”
The FY 2023-2024 budget included funding for advanced operations for the November election, such as securing polling precincts and printing ballots, while the rest of the election’s budget was supposed to come from the FY2024-2025 budget.
Demings and the commission are expected to discuss the issue at the end of Tuesday’s regular meeting. Demings has hinted at possible legal action.
Gilzean’s office issued a statement on Demings' criticism on Monday:
“The cost-savings our office achieved last year helped pave the way for two innovative programs central to the mission of this office to increase voter outreach while putting a college education within the reach of low-income students across Orange County Schools. In addition, our office also returned more than $700,000 in unused funds to the county.
“Unfortunately, that’s not enough for Mayor Jerry Demings and some of his colleagues.
“Orange County residents should be concerned, disappointed, and offended that the mayor wants to waste hundreds of thousands of tax dollars on attorneys and legal fees to deny low-income students the opportunity to improve their lives.
“Our office acted well within the law to establish these scholarships and will vigorously defend our mission to expand voter participation and improve the lives of Orange County citizens.”
Elections Supervisor Glen Gilzean
Gilzean’s office told News 6 last week that the $4 million surplus came about because the budget, which had been drawn up by Gilzean’s predecessor Bill Cowles, budgets for a bigger vote-by-mail operation than needed, along with lackluster turnout for the Presidential Preference Primary and the Florida Statewide Primary in August.
It’s not uncommon for the supervisor of elections office to return surplus funds to the county.
According to county records, the office returned:
- $1,184,142 in Fiscal Year 2020
- $2,784,790 in FY 2021
- $1,412,165 in FY 2022
- $1,326,187 in FY 2023
Meanwhile, both CareerSource Central Florida and Valencia College issued statements saying they would return the funds if asked to do so:
“CareerSource Central Florida is grateful for community partners who contribute to the mission of helping residents explore and obtain meaningful careers. In September, the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office provided CareerSource Central Florida with a $1.9 million award. The purpose of the donation was to enhance career services and scholarships for election workers post the election, and to provide them with career services, upskilling, training and employment. The funds would also expand existing youth programs at CareerSource Central Florida, through career exploration opportunities to learn about civic engagement and cybersecurity. If Orange County requests, we will return the funds. Regardless, at CareerSource Central Florida, we will continue our commitment to assist individuals along their career journey.”
Pamela Nabors, president and CEO of CareerSource Central Florida
“Valencia College is grateful for the generous support of our many community partners. We appreciate the forward thinking of the Orange County Supervisor of Elections who expressed a goal to increase voter registration and college-going rates in underserved communities through the establishment of the Orange County Promise of the Future Scholarship Fund.
“The recent success of a similar program, Osceola Prosper, gives us optimism about the success of this scholarship fund. Osceola Prosper provides scholarships for all graduating high school seniors and is funded by the Osceola County Commission. Osceola Prosper resulted in a substantial increase in Osceola County’s college-going rate, which is now, for the first time ever, higher than Orange County’s. At the same time, the Osceola Prosper program eliminated disparities in the college-going rate in historically underrepresented communities.
“Our hope is that the students at Evans and Jones High Schools, which have among the lowest college-going rates in Orange County, benefit from the scholarships contemplated by the Orange County Promise of the Future Scholarship Fund. Although it would be disappointing if students do not have access to these scholarships, if Orange County asks for the return of the funds, Valencia will return the $2.1 million contribution.”
Dr. Katherine Plinske, Valencia College president
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