Central Florida lawmaker failed to file state expense reports for months – Orlando Sentinel

A Central Florida lawmaker failed to properly document the use of state funds allocated to her district office, prompting legislative staff to halt payments earlier this year.

St. Cloud Republican state Rep. Paula Stark provided “unacceptable” descriptions in reports that listed expenses totaling more than $7,000 and failed to file reports for six months last year, according to an email from a legislative staffer that Stark received in March.

Two former Stark employees said they alerted Florida House staff to problems with their office accounts earlier this year. Both were later fired.

The former staffers also raised concerns with the House about the role of Stark’s friend Joel Davis in the office. He, not the congressman, controls Stark’s account within the district. Davis is not a House staffer but serves as Stark’s campaign manager.

Stark denied that Davis controls the account, which is meant to cover expenses such as office supplies and travel reimbursements for district employees. She was allocated about $3,300 a month, she said.

“He doesn’t manage the account; I manage the account,” Stark said. “I have to sign the report, I have to sign the checks.”

However, Davis is helping her report travel expenses, she said. She declined to comment on the reasons for the assistants’ dismissal.

Stark, 67, was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2022. Her district covers part of northern Osceola County, including large parts of St. Cloud and east Kissimmee, and part of southern Orange County. She is seeking re-election this year and currently has three Democratic opponents.

On March 12, she received an email from Fran Keyes, an employee in the Office of Legislative Services, saying she was six months behind on filing required expense reports, prompting the office to hold off on further payments until lawmakers brought her up to date. The email made no mention of the allegations against Davis.

In an interview this week, Stark said she had “simply fallen behind” in filing the reports and had tried over the weekend to get them up to date but had been unable to do so due to “glitches” in the computer system.

Keyes’ message also said Stark referred to several issues from January to May 2023 as “temporary,” which he said was an “unacceptable description.” Stark said she used the designation as a placeholder and intends to change it later.

“We knew it wasn’t labeled properly,” Stark said.

The two former employees told the Sentinel they were deeply concerned about the way Stark’s office operated.

“I felt very uncomfortable because it was either gross negligence or, in the worst case, had all the signs of embezzlement of funds,” said JD Widhalm, who served as Stark’s parliamentary adviser from September 2023 to the end of March 2024.

He and former district assistant Daniel J. López say Davis wielded excessive influence in Stark’s office, saying he frequently copied messages between the congresswoman and her staff.

The two former employees also said Davis sometimes acted as if he were their boss.

“It really feels like I have to answer to him before I get an answer from the congressman. He really thinks he is the head of human resources when in fact he is the campaign manager,” López wrote in an email to Pamela Davis Greene, the human resources director for the Florida House of Representatives.

Davis has keys to the district office, López added.

However, Stark said Davis helps out in her office but does not hold an official role.

“I’m consulting with him,” she said.

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