TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The Florida Ethics Commission announced it had found probable cause in a complaint filed against Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried.
The Commission was reviewing a complaint regarding Fried’s financial disclosures in 2017 and 2018. After review, the commission reported that there was probable cause she had violated the state constitution and financial disclosure laws through an inaccurate report on her earnings in that time frame.
According to reporting by the Associated Press, Fried was accused of not properly disclosing lobbying income. The complaint against Fried was filed in June by a Republican Party official.
The Commission considered a complaint filed against Commissioner of Agriculture Nicole Heather Fried. Probable cause was found on allegations she violated Florida’s Constitution and financial disclosure law by failing to accurately disclose income on her 2017 and 2018 Form 6 disclosure filings.
Florida Commission on Ethics Report, dated 12-08-2021
In response to questions by reporters, a campaign spokesperson for the Commissioner and Democratic gubernatorial candidate gave a statement to the AP, saying that Fried was being targeted for fixing her disclosures and the ruling was baseless and politically driven.
Fried’s spokesperson said she will be requesting that an administrative law judge dismiss the complaint.
WFLA has reached out to Fried’s team for a statement on the ethics complaint and its current status.