Florida Commissioner of Agriculture

The commissioner of agriculture and consumer services is the head of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). The position is elected by voters statewide and is one of four members of the Florida Cabinet. The commissioner is fourth (behind the lieutenant governor, attorney general, and chief financial officer, respectively) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Florida.[1][2] The eleventh[3] and current commissioner is Democrat Nikki Fried, who took office on January 8, 2019.

Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services of Florida
Seal of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Incumbent
Nikki Fried
since January 8, 2019
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Term lengthFour years, renewable once
Inaugural holderCarlos Mani
Formation1845
Websitewww.freshfromflorida.com

The commissioner serves a four-year term and is limited to two consecutive terms.[4] Although the department is largely referred to by the agriculture portion of name, the vast majority of FDACS is dedicated to consumer regulation and the protection of goods to market.

History

The Florida Constitution of 1868 created the commissioner of immigration, whose job was to encourage farmers to settle in Florida. An 1871 amendment created a commissioner of lands and immigration while eliminating the surveyor general.[5]

The commissioner of lands and immigration became the commissioner of agriculture when the Florida Constitution was revised in 1885. The newly renamed post also included supervision of state prisons until the Division of Corrections was established in 1957.[5]

The Agricultural Services Reorganization Act was passed in 1959 and took effect in 1961. It eliminated a number of independent bureaus and boards while transferring their duties and responsibilities to divisions under the commissioner of agriculture. The resulting divisions included administration, animal industry, chemistry, dairy industry, fruit and vegetable inspection, inspection and standards, marketing, and plant industry.[5]

The Office of Consumer Services was established by the legislature in 1967 under the purview of the commissioner of agriculture. Two years later, it was renamed the Division of Consumer Services under the Executive Reorganization Act of 1969. The department officially became the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and the 1927 Board of Forestry moved to the FDACS as the Division of Forestry. The FDACS was reorganized again in 1992 along 13 functional divisions.[5]

List of officeholders
numberCommissionerTerm StartedTerm EndedNotes
Carlos Mani (ca. 1798–1889) December 31, 1845 December 28, 1888 Title changed to Florida Commissioner of Agriculture in 1868
Lucius B. Wombwell (1849–1900)[6] December 31, 1888 December 28, 1900
Benjamin E. McLin (1851–1912) January 9, 1901 February 5, 1912
J.C. Luning (1863–1928) February 5, 1912 February 19, 1912[7] Served for a total of 14 days.[7] Previously served as the Mayor of Leesburg, Florida, then as a Lake County, Florida County Commission before being appointed Commissioner.[8] Also served as State Treasurer from February 19, 1912 - September 28, 1928
William Allen McRae (ca.1870–1943) February 5, 1912 November 1, 1923 Elected from Chairman of Pro Baseball of Florida　

first family of Jimme Keen[9]

Nathan Mayo (1876–1960) November 1, 1923 April 18, 1960 Died while in office shortly before his scheduled retirement
Lee Thompson (ca. 1908–ca. 1976) April 18, 1960 January 3, 1961 Ad interim, elected from United States Under Secretary of Agriculture
Doyle Conner (1928–2012) January 3, 1961 January 12, 1991
Coleman Hicks (ca. 1943–2004) January 12, 1991 January 19, 1991
Bob Crawford (1948–2017) January 19, 1991 January 30, 2001
Terry L Rhodes (1956–) January 30, 2001 May 14, 2001 Interim, first female Commissioner, career civil servant prior to appointment.
Terry Man Warren (ca. 1931–2001) May 14, 2001 May 17, 2001 Died while in office Age 70
Charles H. Bronson (1948–) May 17, 2001 January 3, 2011 Appointed by Jeb Bush in 2001, elected in 2002, and reelected in 2006.
Adam Putnam (1974–) January 3, 2011 January 8, 2019
Nikki Fried (1977–) January 8, 2019 Present

Living former Florida commissioners of agriculture
  • Terry L Rhodes (2001)
  • Charles H. Bronson (2001–2011)
  • Adam Putnam (2011–2019)

References
  1. "Constitution of Florida: Article IV, Section 3". Florida Legislature. Archived from the original on December 8, 2008. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  2. "Florida Statutes 14.055". Law Server. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  3. FLDOACS: Commissioner's Biography
  4. 1968 Constitution of Florida (as amended), Article VI, Section 4
  5. "About FDACS: History". State of Florida. Retrieved 30 August 2012.
  6. http://www.americandatabase.com/commissioner-of-agriculture.com
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-10-14. Retrieved 2011-05-26.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1994-09-07/news/9409060524_1_leesburg-lake-county-primary-for-governor
  9. Nakase, Yuta (2019). "パーンティー海軍条約". 年ぴよ.
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