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Jared Moskowitz

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Jared Moskowitz
Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 15, 2019
GovernorRon DeSantis
Preceded byWes Maul
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 97th district
In office
November 6, 2012 – January 11, 2019
Preceded byMartin David Kiar[1]
Succeeded byDan Daley
Personal details
Born (1980-12-18) December 18, 1980 (age 43)
Coral Springs, Florida, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseLeah Rifkin
EducationGeorge Washington University (BS)
Nova Southeastern University (JD)

Jared Evan Moskowitz (born December 18, 1980) is a Democratic politician from Florida. He has served as director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management since being appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis in January 2019. Previously, he served in the Florida House of Representatives, representing the Coral Springs area in northern Broward County, from 2012 to 2019.

History

Moskowitz was born in Coral Springs, and attended George Washington University, receiving his Bachelor's degree in political science, and then Shepard Broad Law Center at Nova Southeastern University, receiving his Juris Doctor. He worked as an intern for Vice-President Al Gore, served as an assistant on Joe Lieberman's 2004 presidential campaign, and in 2008 served as one of Barack Obama's electors in Florida. While attending law school, Moskowitz was elected to the Parkland City Commission in 2006 and was re-elected in 2010, serving until he resigned to run for the legislature in 2012. While serving as a City Commissioner, Moskowitz supported efforts to make the city more eco-friendly by providing subsidies to households that purchase low-flow toilets and showerheads, energy-efficient air conditioners, and hybrid cars, noting, "We will literally issue them a check. We're sick of waiting for the federal government to do something, so we've got to do what we can."[2] Following graduation, he started working for AshBritt Environmental as their Director of Government Relations and General Counsel.

Florida House of Representatives

When the state legislative districts were redrawn in 2012, Moskowitz opted to run in the newly drawn 97th District, which consisted of northern Broward County. He won the Democratic primary entirely uncontested, and advanced to the general election, where he faced James Gleason, the Republican nominee and a business owner who was an unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of Coral Springs. The Sun-Sentinel praised both candidates as "good choices for an open seat," but ultimately decided to endorse Moskowitz, declaring that his "good grasp of statewide and local issues" made him the better candidate.[3] He ended up defeating Gleason in a landslide, winning with 69% of the vote.

During his first term in the legislature, Moskowitz sponsored a memorial for Robert Levinson, who has been held as a hostage in Iran since 2007, calling on "Congress, the Obama administration and the Secretary of State's office to work to get Levinson home." Moskowitz's proposed memorial passed both houses of the legislature and was signed by Governor Rick Scott.[4]

In 2014 and 2016, Moskowitz was re-elected to his second term in the legislature without opposition.

Division of Emergency Management

On December 6, 2018, Governor-Elect Ron DeSantis announced he would appoint Moskowitz as director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management in his new administration.[5] Moskowitz resigned from the House of Representatives and took office as DEM director on January 15, 2019.[6]

In early April 2020, Moskowitz made headlines when he complained that foreign countries were paying the American company 3M with higher cash to reroute millions of N95 masks destined for the state of Florida during the COVID-19 pandemic. He stated that "For the last several weeks, we have had a boiler room chasing down 3M authorized distributors [and] brokers representing that they sell the N95 masks, only get to warehouses that are completely empty." He then said the 3M authorized U.S. distributors later told him the masks Florida contracted for never showed up because the company instead prioritized orders that come in later, for higher prices, from foreign countries (including Germany, Russia, and France). As a result, Moskowitz highlighted the issue on Twitter, saying he decided to "troll" 3M.[7][8][9]

References

  1. ^ https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=759896
  2. ^ Skoloff, Brian (December 27, 2007). "Cities enticing residents to go green". USA Today. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  3. ^ "State House Districts 97 and 98: Chose Moskowitz and Edwards". Sun-Sentinel. October 15, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  4. ^ Huriash, Lisa J. (December 13, 2013). "Government needs to 'step up,' Levinson family says". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
  5. ^ Huriash, Lisa (2018-12-06). "DeSantis chooses South Florida Democrat as state's emergency management leader". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 2019-01-14.
  6. ^ "Representatives Of The Florida House". Florida House of Representatives. Retrieved 2019-01-14.
  7. ^ Halon, Yael (3 April 2020). "Florida emergency management official says 3M selling masks to foreign countries: 'We're chasing ghosts'". Fox News Channel. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  8. ^ "Interview With Jared Moskowitz, Director of Florida's Division of Emergency Management". WFOR-TV. 3 April 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  9. ^ Man, Anthony (5 April 2020). "Florida emergency management chief says state will have enough ICU beds and ventilators". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
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