News Service of Florida
Florida’s new Cabinet lineup is once again a millionaires’ row.
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and Attorney General Ashley Moody were elected to the Cabinet in November, joining returning Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis. And while the new lineup is slightly less well-off than the previous Cabinet, Fried, Moody and Patronis each top seven figures in net worth, according to newly filed financial-disclosure reports.
Fried, the lone statewide elected Democrat, reported a net worth of $1.4 million as of June 24, up from $271,613 when she ran for office in 2018.
The biggest difference is a $701,000 home. An attorney and former medical-marijuana lobbyist from Fort Lauderdale, Fried has said she moved to Leon County after the election, though the property’s address is redacted in the newly filed report. When running for the office, Fried didn’t list any property among her assets.
Fried also reported a salary of $128,972 this year as agriculture commissioner and $247,730 in checking and savings accounts, $156,934 in retirement accounts and $360,588 in a blind trust.
Among financial liabilities, Fried listed $28,750 remaining on a car loan and $76,098 on a student loan.
State officials are required to file financial-disclosure forms by July 1 of each year, though they receive a “grace period” that allows them to file until Sept. 1 without facing penalties. The reports typically reflect finances at the end of the previous year, but some officials, such as Fried, file more updated information.
Patronis, whose family has long run a popular restaurant in Panama City Beach, saw his net worth grow just over 2 percent last year. He reported a net worth of $6,626,733 as of Dec. 31, up from $6,490,372 a year earlier.
A former state House member, Patronis was elected to a full term in November as chief financial officer after being appointed to the post in 2017 by then-Gov. Rick Scott.
In his new report, he listed the value of his Bay County home at $489,601 and a Tallahassee condominium at $35,054. He also listed ownership in eight other Northwest Florida parcels with a combined value of just over $600,000.
His shares, partnership interests and a retirement account tied to Patronis Brothers, Inc., Patronis Brothers Partnership and Jimmy T. Patronis Family Ltd. Partnership total about $4.7 million. The-family owned Capt. Anderson’s Restaurant provided $37,684 in income to Patronis last year. Patronis was also paid $128,972 from the state.
Moody, a former Hillsborough County circuit judge whose husband is a federal law-enforcement agent, reported a net worth of $2.99 million as of Dec. 31, a slight dip from the nearly $3.02 million a year earlier.
In the new report, Moody listed the value of her Tampa home at $351,748. Moody also has stakes in the Young & Moody Building in Plant City, a condo in Longboat Key, land in Yancey County, N.C., two condos in Treasure Island and vacant land in Plant City, which combined to account for $636,960 of her net worth.
Among other assets, Moody listed a $482,034 stake in Moody Investment Limit Partnership, and $708,879 stake in Artzibushev-University One Limited Partnership, a real estate brokerage firm. Moody Investment accounted for $84,634 of Moody’s income last year, while Artzibushev provided $62,521 in income.
Moody also reported owning 33 percent interest in a Merrill Lynch account that included stock in numerous companies such as SunTrust Bank, Wells Fargo, BP PLC, Crispr Therapeutics, Wynn Resorts and Valero. She also owned interests in two other Merrill Lynch accounts.
After getting elected in November, Moody replaced former Attorney General Pam Bondi, who reported a net worth of $1,861,777 as of Dec. 31. Bondi was required to file a financial-disclosure report because her final term extended into the first week of 2019.
Fried replaced former Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, whose family’s citrus and cattle business helped provide him with a net worth of $8.9 million as of the end of 2018.
