Florida lawmakers probe long‑term agency vacancies as officials seek pay and rate realignments

TALLAHASSEE — Agency leaders told a House State Administration Budget Subcommittee that persistent vacancies across state government are constraining services and that remedies will require a mix of pay realignments, targeted hiring strategies and, in some cases, legislative permission to change hiring rules.

Chair Maggert opened the session by directing the subcommittee to focus on positions vacant at least 180 days. Presenters from several large agencies — including the Department of Financial Services, Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Department of Revenue, the Office of Insurance Regulation and others — reported vacancy counts and plans to fill or repurpose roles.

Scott Fennell, deputy chief financial officer at the Department of Financial Services, said DFS had 119 vacancies more than 180 days, about 6% of its workforce, with 76% in first‑responder or insurance roles and the rest mostly lawyers and accountants. He told the committee the agency carried out university job fairs, pooled recruitments and career‑development steps and had realigned about $1.6 million within its budget request to raise salary dollars intended to improve recruitment and retention.

Melanie Griffin, secretary of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, said DBPR had 34 such vacancies out of 1,650 authorized positions. Griffin gave a breakdown: 13 candidates identified or starting, eight closed and under review, four newly advertised, five for reclassification, two held for administrative processes, one under rate review, one withdrawn candidate and one position the department recommended cutting in the governor's budget. She told the committee DBPR's human resources estimate of turnover costs in affected divisions ranged from roughly $150,000 to $1 million.

Dr. Zingali, executive director of the Department of Revenue, framed the problem at enterprise scale, saying his agency's vacancy rate fell from about 12.5% to 9.5% in the past year but that large programs still face long‑term vacancies. He said DOR counts 183 positions vacant more than 180 days and flagged that the general tax program — the agency's highest vacancy area — faces a structural funding issue: an operating trust fund is roughly $12 million short of what would be needed to fully fund appropriated positions, limiting the agency's ability to convert appropriation and rate into actual payroll dollars.

Other agencies reported mixed progress: the Office of Financial Regulation said it had zero vacancies over 180 days; the Division of Administrative Hearings said many vacant positions were reserved for a new Citizens property insurance claims unit and would be filled as the program grows; and the Florida Gaming Control Commission said it is filling a recently posted inspector general slot and sought permission to repurpose a regulatory analyst toward law enforcement work after a jump in seizures of illegal gaming machines.

Committee members pressed about specific long‑standing vacancies, residency rules for certain law enforcement posts, whether hybrid or remote work could be used to boost recruitment, and whether agencies were holding vacancies to free rate. Officials said some positions were intentionally frozen for reengineering or because funding existed on appropriation and rate but not in available cash in trust funds; others were hard to fill because comparable private‑sector pay, remote work options and location made state roles less attractive.

The hearing produced requests for follow‑up materials: DFS agreed to provide maps of law‑enforcement regions, DBPR offered turnover‑cost calculations and DOR said it could provide more detail on the longest‑standing vacancies and reengineering outcomes. The committee adjourned without votes.