Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently appointed John MacIver and John D’Aquila and reappointed Julie Imanuel Brown, Michael Yaworsky and Charles Drago to the Florida Gaming Control Commission, which was created in May 2021 during a special session. At that time, legislators passed a new gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, which later was rejected by a federal judge. The commission was established in a separate bill to regulate gambling activities in the state. The appointments must be confirmed by the state Senate.
MacIver, of Tallahassee, will serve as chairman of the commission. He is general counsel to Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and the Department of Financial Services. He previously served as deputy general counsel to DeSantis and was a senior official at the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. He also is a sworn law enforcement officer.
D’Aquila, of Jacksonville Beach, is a certified public accountant and owner of D’Aquila Advisors LLC. Previously he worked as chief financial officer at Comstock Inc., chief executive officer at Select Wines and was a senior auditor at Ernst and Young. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants and is a former vice chairman of the Society of Financial Professionals.
DeSantis also reappointed to the commission Julie Imanuel Brown, former Department of Business and Professional Regulation secretary. She previously served 10 years on the Florida Public Service Commission, and was chair from 2016 to 2018. Brown is a graduate of Leadership Florida, served on the Florida Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission and is a former president of the League of Women Voters of Hillsborough County.
Michael Yaworsky, who will serve as commission vice chair, is the former Office of Insurance Regulation chief of staff. He was legal counsel to the Georgia Office of Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner, counsel to the Georgia Senate President Pro Tempore and chief of staff at the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
Charles Drago is founder of Drago Professional Consultants and a former DBPR Secretary. He previously served as chief of police to the city of Oviedo and spent 29 years with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department.
