Jim Rosica
Florida Grown, the political committee that likely will fuel Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam‘s 2018 bid for governor, posted more than $185,000 in contributions for May.
Committees face a deadline for reporting their latest numbers on Friday. The committee released its figures early on its own website.
Contributions include $100,000 from Florida Jobs PAC, a political arm of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, records show.
“Commissioner Putnam is a true champion of Florida’s important agriculture industry, of ensuring that we secure Florida’s water future, and that Florida’s economy continues moving forward through private-sector job creation,” said Edie Ousley, the chamber’s vice president of public affairs.
“Those are qualities important to ensuring that Florida is prepared for the 6 million new residents that will call Florida home by 2030, and we’re therefore proud to support him,” she added.
Other big givers were the Florida Phosphate Political Committee with $25,000, Florida Polytechnic University trustee Robert W. Stork with $20,000, and Cone Distributing president Douglas Cone with $10,000.
Florida Grown was “established by Putnam to help achieve his vision for Florida — a place where jobs are plentiful, quality education is accessible, and freedom and liberty flourish,” according to a news release.
May records also show the committee gave $1,000 each to the campaigns of House Republican Leader Dana Young, now running for state Senate, and state Sen. Anitere Flores, a Miami Republican seeking re-election.
Political committees aren’t limited in how much they can accept, unlike candidates’ individual campaign accounts.
The 41-year-old Putnam still has not confirmed his political plans after he is term-limited as Agriculture Commissioner in 2018.
Florida Grown recently released a video on Facebook from a “Friends of Florida Agriculture Barbecue” that included a question-and-answer session with Republican U.S. Senate candidates Ron DeSantis, Carlos Lopez–Cantera and Todd Wilcox.
