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State subpoena seeks JTA records as transit agency faces deep cuts
Florida investigators are seeking records on JTA spending, contracts, scholarships and ridership, including data tied to its autonomous vehicle program. The probe comes as the authority confronts a $39 million budget gap and plans layoffs and service reductions.
The Florida Attorney General’s Office has issued a criminal subpoena to the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, seeking records on agency spending, contracts, scholarships and transit ridership, JTA said Tuesday, Sept. 29. The authority said it is cooperating with the investigation.
An internal memo from interim CEO Cleveland Ferguson says investigators are seeking records primarily from October 2023 through October 2025. The request includes communications involving former CEO Nat Ford, Ford’s wife and the owner of an organizational development firm, as well as information about JTA’s tuition-reimbursement policy, scholarships, selected contracts and communications involving Ferguson.
The subpoena also seeks ridership data, including figures connected to NAVI, JTA’s autonomous vehicle program. City Councilman Rory Diamond, the council’s liaison to JTA, said transit funding can depend on ridership numbers. He noted that inaccurate reporting could have serious consequences if it led the authority to receive funds it was not entitled to, while emphasizing that he does not know whether that happened.
The investigation arrives as JTA works to address a $39 million budget shortfall. The authority is laying off nearly 200 employees and reducing transit service. It has also received approval to use $30 million in local gas-tax revenue for financial obligations, with repayment scheduled over 10 years.
The subpoena is a demand for evidence, not a finding that JTA, Ford or anyone else broke the law. The records investigators review will help determine the course of the state inquiry.