DeSantis appoints 2 more GRU Authority members

Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed the final two Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) Authority members on Wednesday afternoon, just hours before the swearing-in meeting at Gainesville City Hall.

In a press release, DeSantis announced former Gainesville City Commissioner Craig Carter, and Dr. Tara Ezzell to the authority, rounding out the five-person board. The swearing-in meeting will be held at 6 p.m.

Carter is a commercial realtor and sales associate with Coldwell Banker Commercial M.M. Parrish Realtors. He is a Republican who previously served as a city commissioner from 2014 to 2017, when he lost his reelection bid to David Arreola.

Carter currently serves as the vice chair of the Gainesville Regional Airport Authority and is a member of the Gainesville Rotary Club.

Ezzell, who is also a registered Republican, is a dermatologist and partner at Dermatology Associates. She is a member of the Alachua County Medical Society, serves as the assistant secretary of the Parker Road Community Development District Board of Directors, and is the former vice chair of the Child Advocacy Center Board of Directors.

Ezzell earned her bachelor’s degree from Emory University and her doctor of medicine degree at UF.

Carter and Ezzell will join James Coats IV, Robert Karow, and Eric Lawson, who were appointed to the authority by DeSantis on Sept. 26.

On Monday, two board members of Gainesville Residents United Inc. filed a lawsuit against DeSantis seeking to nullify the governor’s first three appointments based on their residency outside the city limits and a lack of public notice about openings on the board. 

Supporters of the new authority argue DeSantis can appoint any Alachua County resident to a vacant slot at the beginning of the board, and that only replacement appointments must reflect the ratio of GRU customers in and out of Gainesville.

On Friday, a Leon County judge threw out the city of Gainesville’s lawsuit challenging the new authority’s existence, finding that the defendants in the claim were entitled to a judgment in their favor on each count set forth by the city in its lawsuit.

The GRU Authority will manage all aspects of the city of Gainesville’s utilities, according to House Bill 1645, which DeSantis signed into law June 28. 

HB 1645 cuts the Gainesville City Commission out of the decision-making process, placing GRU General Manager Tony Cunningham under the authority’s purview. The authority will also set rates, issue bonds and chart future energy plans for more than 93,000 GRU customers.