Keeping track of Lee County lobbying forms with Lee Clerk’s office
In quarterly lobbying forms filed with Lee County, there has been a flurry of activity related to Boca Grande, particularly relating to parking.
Lee County has an actual lobbying ordinance. Lobbyists file documents related to official lobbying yearly to indicate clients, and staff and elected officials file notices quarterly. For instance, for the last quarter, on Commissioner Cecil Pendergrass’s report, it shows Larry Hannah coming on March 24 to talk about the Boca Grande parking issue. For Commissioner Kevin Ruane, it shows three meetings between Neale Montgomery of the Pavese Law Firm on the issue of parking, on the dates March 10, March 17 and March 31.
Ruane is detailed in his reports filed with clerks for this quarter. For instance, a meeting with Boca Grande residents is also included in the public filings. A Feb. 18 meeting included Lynn Seibert, Mary Howell, Bob Fletcher, Sue Sligar and Louis Sarkes. Mary Howell also visited on Jan. 9 relating to “medical center parking.”
Pavese is one of the biggest lobbyists for Lee County. Each year they file a form with clients. For example, for the Annual Lobbyist Registration for the period of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025, for Pavese, the firm filed a list of clients. In a document received last summer on July 12, 2024, Boca Grande-related clients included Bocalife LLC; Boca Grande Health Clinic; Mary L. and Patrick C. Howell; Patrick and Charlene Neal; Thomas Duckworth; David and Marjene Fox; James Gerdsen; Gilchrist Neighborhood Association; Marguerite Potter; Three Sisters Homeowners Association; and David and Christine Yaccino.
Pavese is a giant with other major American clients; they listed everyone from Hertz, to Hyatt, to Pulte, Racetrack, Valvoline and Walmart.
There are many other official lobbyist firms. For instance, Strayhorn Persons-Mulicka & Fisher P.L. represents a number of Boca Grande clients, including Boca Grande Health Clinic Foundation, Farish Family, The Gasparilla Inn, O’Bannon Enterprises and The Island School.
A full list of official lobbyist firms can be found at the link leegov.com/lobbying or leeclerk.org.
How Lee County defines lobbying; keeps track of meetings
In the ordinance, staff and commissioners keep a log related to who lobbies them.
The ordinance states that it is a “written log which documents each oral lobbying communication or meeting with a lobbyist whether paid or unpaid, held for the purpose of lobbying outside a duly noticed public meeting or hearing on the record.” For instance, for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, Robert Codie, assistant county manager, listed a number of meetings, including Mike Clough of the Minnesota Twins, and members of the Port Authority. From Boca Grande, Marta Howell, Bayne Stevenson, Steve Laughlin and Jeff Mudgett came to talk about the Boca Grande Community Center.
They deliver these documents at the end of the quarter; the Lee Clerk stamps them as received and posts them. There are exceptions. These include “County employees discussing government business; Law enforcement personnel conducting an investigation; Persons when they communicate with Board members or employees in their individual capacity for the purpose of self-representation, or on behalf of their family, without compensation or reimbursement; Persons when they appear at public meetings or hearings and communicate on the record; Consultants under contract with Lee County who communicate with Commissioners or employees regarding issues related to the scope of services in their contract.”
The county has firm definitions of what is a lobbyist.
They list them as “any person, firm, corporation or other legal entity, paid or unpaid, who, on behalf of another, engages in the activity of lobbying as defined in this ordinance.”
There is also a “Paid Lobbyist” category, which means a “person, firm, corporation or other legal entity who is employed and receives payment, or who contracts for economic consideration in any form for the purpose of lobbying, or a person who is principally employed for, or whose substantial duties pertain to governmental affairs communications for another person or governmental entity to lobby on behalf of that other person or governmental entity and engages in the activity of lobbying as defined in this Ordinance.”
