HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023 07 10 Awards/Presentations 101 - City Lobbyist Presentation.pdfAWARDS AND PRESENTATIONS ITEM 101
CITY COMMISSION AGENDA | JULY 10, 2023 REGULAR MEETING
TITLE
City Lobbyist Presentation
SUMMARY
The City Commission approved the hiring of City Lobbyist Andrew Kalel at the April 10,
2023 Meeting to represent the City as an advocate of the City's interests in regards to
a wide array of matters including grant funding and assisting in influencing local and
State legislation and local policy. A bio for Mr. Kalel is below:
Andrew brings a unique and deep understanding of the intricacies of local and state
government to Sunrise Consulting. Andrew’s family has been a part of Florida’s
legislative and regulatory process for many years and has a firm grasp on the
importance of building lasting relationships. He also is a critical thinker, thoughtfully
crafting strategy to engage decision makers in a variety of subjects.
Andrew started his career in and around state government as an undergraduate in
college, holding positions with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, in the
Secretary’s office of the Florida Lottery, and as a court-appointed auditor for the
Justice Administrative Commission. In these roles, he was exposed to executive
decision makers and the workflow process of large state agencies with multi-million-
dollar budgets impacting every day Floridians. He interned for the Florida Sheriffs
Association, the House of Representatives, and with Security First Insurance Company,
one of Florida’s top five, Florida-based property insurance companies.
After college, Andrew leveraged his knowledge of state government to work in the
private sector in a project management position under Jason Gonzalez at Shutts &
Bowen. There he supported large government affairs projects for the firm by liaising
with the Executive Office of the Governor, as well as assisting with tracking legislation
and gathering and analyzing political research.
Over his career Andrew obtained both his insurance adjuster, and broker license. He
has worked as a catastrophe adjuster after Hurricane Matthew, and as a daily claims
adjuster. Andrew continues to stay abreast of insurance public policy, and emerging
industry trends.
Before joining Sunrise Consulting Group, Andrew was the joint Legislative Affairs
Director for the Offices of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel (Offices).
Andrew was successful in building these agencies’ first legislative program and devised
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a strategy to increase awareness of the agencies’ mission, purpose, and policy and
budgetary needs. During his tenure, the offices saw an over a 30% increase in funding
and passed several pieces of legislation that were critical to agency operations and the
clients the offices serve.
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