Jacksonville City Council President Kevin Carrico is moving to put his day-job boss on one of the city’s most powerful boards, planning a resolution that would nominate Paul Martinez, chief executive of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida, for a seat on the JEA board. Carrico also works for the Boys & Girls Clubs, and if the council signs off, Martinez would step into the position currently held by outgoing JEA director Arthur Adams.
According to Action News Jax, Carrico intended to file the nomination at Tuesday night’s council meeting and released a statement highlighting Martinez’s record of civic service. The outlet also reported that when Carrico was asked whether he would abstain from voting on his own boss’s nomination to avoid any hint of conflict, he did not directly answer the question.
Who Is Paul Martinez?
Martinez is listed as the president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida, while Carrico appears on the nonprofit’s leadership page as vice president of strategic initiatives. The organization operates dozens of clubs across Duval and neighboring counties and focuses on youth development and community programming, according to its leadership page at Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida.
Why the JEA Board Matters
JEA is the city-owned utility that delivers power and water across much of Northeast Florida, and its seven-member board signs off on major decisions involving rates, generation and infrastructure. City documents and workshop materials related to Article 21 show that voters approved charter revisions in 2020 that shifted control of key seats by giving the City Council authority to appoint four of JEA’s seven directors. Those changes are outlined in the city’s materials on the JEA recapitalization process at the City of Jacksonville. Carrico’s announcement would place Martinez in the seat associated with Arthur Adams, who is listed on JEA’s roster and whose appointment was noted in a January 2025 release from the utility.
Ethics and Precedent
Action News Jax reported that Carrico did not seek an ethics opinion before introducing the resolution and that he was not required to do so. The same report points to a 2019 example where the city’s Ethics Office consulted the State Ethics Commission and advised a council member that he could legally vote on a JEA nomination, a reminder that what passes legal muster does not always quiet questions about political optics.
What Comes Next
The nomination now heads into the City Council’s standard process, which requires referral to committees before any final vote. That can include committee review, potential amendments and multiple readings. An overview of council procedure from News4Jax explains that the council president assigns bills to committees and that most items receive committee consideration and up to three readings before the full council takes final action.
Martinez has publicly defended the Boys & Girls Clubs’ handling of grant funding and said the organization follows required regulations and oversight, according to local reporting. WOKV reported Martinez’s statement, and the nomination is likely to draw scrutiny from ethics observers and council colleagues as it moves through the committee process.
