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ORLANDO, Fla. – The Florida Commission on Ethics found probable cause that Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa violated Florida ethics law by maintaining a prohibited contractual relationship with an entity doing business with the city after her business accepted grant money administered by the city.
The commission announced the decision Tuesday following its Aug. 28 meeting in Tallahassee.
Commissioners stressed that a finding of probable cause is not a determination that an ethics violation occurred. Any violation would be decided only after a full evidentiary hearing.
The backstory:
According to the commission, the allegation stems from Espinosa’s business receiving grant funding that was administered by the City of Kissimmee while she served as mayor.
Kissimmee city commissioners voted Aug. 18 against advancing articles of impeachment against Mayor Espinosa following a special prosecutor’s ethics investigation. A court-appointed special prosecutor recommended impeachment after investigating potential ethics violations related to the city’s BOOST 2.0 COVID-19 relief program. The investigative report alleged that over $50,000 in public relief funds went to businesses linked to Espinosa and her family without proper disclosure of conflicts of interest.
In a separate ethics complaint, the commission found no probable cause that Espinosa failed to properly disclose a gift worth more than $100. Commissioners rejected a recommendation from the commission’s advocate and concluded Espinosa disclosed the gift on the wrong financial disclosure form based on advice from the city attorney.
Mayor responds
The other side:
Mayor Espinosa live-streamed a response to the release on Wednesday evening. You can watch a recorded video of the livestream below:
The actions involving Espinosa were among 38 matters considered by the commission during its meeting. The panel also reviewed complaints involving current and former public officials from across Florida.
The Florida Commission on Ethics is an independent nine-member panel that investigates alleged violations of the state’s ethics laws. If the commission ultimately determines a violation occurred, it may recommend penalties ranging from public reprimands to removal from office and civil fines of up to $20,000 per violation.
The Source: This story was written based on information from a press release shared by the State of Florida Commission on Ethics, dated Sept. 2, 2026.