Scott Powers
Melinda Miguel, former Florida Chief Inspector General under Gov. Rick Scott, will return to that post under Ron DeSantis, his transition committee announced Friday.
Miguel left the Governor’s Office in the spring of 2017 after 28 years in government to run her own consulting service, the last six as the state’s Chief Inspector General, saying she wanted to have more time for her family, and to leave before the arrival of a new governor. Now she’ll be returning with that new governor.
She was succeeded by Eric Miller.
“Accountability and transparency are critically important to me and are key components to running state government efficiently and fairly,” DeSantis stated in a news release. “I have asked Melinda Miguel, who is highly respected and who I know will hold our state government to the highest of standards, to serve as Chief Inspector General for our administration. Having previously served in the inspector general role, Melinda knows best practices and has the professional auditing and investigative skills needed to ensure Florida is running smoothly and operating with the highest degree of integrity.”
Her April 2017 departure was not without some whispers of potential controversy. During her tenure under Scott and had come under fire for her investigation into the financial troubles at Opa-locka. In each case she denied getting any interference from the governor.
Throughout her career, which dated to 1989 with Florida, she had served as an inspector general in multiple capacities, including for the Government Publishing Office, the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, the Department of Elder Affairs, Department of Education, and the Attorney General’s Office. In 2006, she was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush to the Council of State Agency Inspectors General, a role she served in for about a year.
