Jacksonville Mayor Subpoenaed Amid JTA $39 Million Deficit
Mayor Donna Deegan faces state subpoenas as Jacksonville provides $30 million in emergency funds to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority following a massive budget shortfall.
The Office of Statewide Prosecution and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier have subpoenaed Donna Deegan and interim CEO Cleveland Ferguson as part of an investigation into the Jacksonville Transportation Authority (JTA). State prosecutors are seeking records and notes from a March 2025 meeting between Deegan and former JTA board member Megan Hayward, who allegedly warned the mayor of financial mismanagement and problematic invoices.
The legal action coincides with a financial crisis at JTA, where the deficit grew from an initial $38 million estimate to $39 million. The shortfall led to nearly 200 layoffs and reduced services. JTA Chief Financial Officer Randall Bernard Barnes attributed the crisis to overestimated sales tax revenue and underbudgeted costs for the Skyway, the NAVI autonomous shuttle program, and Connexion ride services.
To prevent a total collapse of services, the Jacksonville City Council approved the release of $30 million in local gas tax funds to rescue the agency, a loan JTA must repay by 2037. In response to the crisis, Deegan signed an executive order requiring financial and ethics training for city board appointees and formed a special committee to investigate the agency's finances. Deegan expressed deep disappointment in former CEO Nat Ford, stating that as the leader of the organization, the financial state was his responsibility.
