JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 One Jacksonville Transportation Authority board member is calling for top leadership to resign.<\/p>\n
It comes as JTA deals with a nearly $40 million budget hole.<\/p>\n
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<<\/a><\/p>\n J. Daniel Vallencourt said former CEO Nat Ford and his executive leadership team painted a picture for the board that did not reflect reality.<\/p>\n He\u2019s demanding three top leaders now resign saying, \u201cIt is impossible to have confidence in those who remain from the original leadership team.\u201d<\/p>\n He specifically wants interim CEO Cleveland Ferguson III, Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Smith, and Senior Vice President of Public Affairs Jessica Shepler to step down.<\/p>\n RELATED: Former JTA CEO Nat Ford skips subpoenaed Council testimony days before starting Dallas job<\/a><\/p>\n Vallencourt claims when the board was asked to approve an emergency amendment to the budget in February, they were not told more than $34 million had already been drawn from JTA\u2019s reserve funds.<\/p>\n He also said he was told the $40 million line of credit was to manage \u201ctypical mismatches\u201d in cash flow and that the past-due vendor bills were \u201croutine.\u201d<\/p>\n Months later he said is when the board learned for the first time that JTA owed vendors about $25 million with more than $5 million months overdue.<\/p>\n Read Vallencourt\u2019s full statement below:<\/p>\n JTA Public Statement Director D Vallencourt 10-26-26.pdf <\/a> by ActionNewsJax <\/a> <\/p>\n [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks<\/a>]<\/p>\n JTA issued the following statement in response to Vallencourt:<\/p>\n \u201cDirector Vallencourt raises the very questions the public, the JTA Board and the Jacksonville City Council are asking: What happened? Why did it happen? And who is responsible?<\/p>\n \u201cInterim CEO Cleveland Ferguson and CFO Randall Barnes plan to address those questions directly at Wednesday\u2019s Board meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n Action News Jax has been reporting on financial mismanagement at JTA for years. It ultimately resulted in nearly 200 people being laid off.<\/p>\n [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter<\/a>] <\/p>\n Many leaders are calling for accountability, including from Ford, who has left JTA for a new transportation job in Dallas that he started Monday. His last day at JTA was last week after almost 14 years at the agency.<\/p>\n Ford was supposed to testify in front of the Jacksonville City Council on Friday after he was subpoenaed. Ford said he will cooperate.<\/p>\n Jacksonville City Councilman Rory Diamond is now working with Ford on a date to testify, in person or virtually.<\/p>\n Click here<\/a> to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here<\/a> to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here<\/a> to stream Action News Jax live.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 One Jacksonville Transportation Authority board member is calling for top leadership to resign. 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