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Florida officials fire state's top banking regulator

Posted at 1:11 PM, Jul 25, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-25 13:11:41-04

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Cabinet has fired the state's top banking regulator amid allegations of sexual harassment and other misconduct.

The firing of Financial Regulation Commissioner Ronald Rubin on Thursday comes a week after the release of a state investigator's report asserting sufficient evidence to support the allegations against him.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, Attorney General Ashley Moody and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis voted to dismiss Rubin and to launch a search for a replacement. The fourth member of the Cabinet, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, walked out of the meeting chambers after seeking to postpone the decision because she said the matter was not properly noticed under the state's open-meeting rules.

Rubin's attorney failed to persuade the four-member Cabinet to issue a censure instead of a pink slip.