Robert Burns of The Space Coast Rocket Fined $24,500 for Multiple Violations of Florida Election Laws

Burns also faces up to 20 years in federal prison After Pleading Guilty to COVID-19-Related Wire Fraud

The Final Order Detailed that Burns Ignored 84 Letters from the State, Took Campaign Funds from ATMs Located in Poker Rooms

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Robert Burns III, 44, founder of the political action committee (PAC) Friends of Florida and affiliated with Space Coast Rocket, has been fined a total of $24,500 for multiple violations of Florida election laws, according to a Final Order issued by the Florida Elections Commission.

The commission found that Burns engaged in a series of campaign finance violations, including withdrawing cash from the campaign account at poker room ATMs, authorizing expenditures without sufficient funds, and failing to properly report contributions and expenditures.

The Final Order detailed that Burns took campaign funds from ATMs located in poker rooms, often making consecutive withdrawals on the same day. Additionally, he withdrew money even when the campaign depository lacked sufficient funds, leading to the bank closing the account due to a prolonged deficit balance.

Among the 20 violations attributed to Burns personally, five related to failing to report contributions on campaign finance reports, ten involved missing required information on contributions and expenditures, and five were for authorizing expenses without available funds.

The order further established that Friends of Florida committed 29 violations, including failing to file required notices of no activity, publishing political advertisements without disclaimers, and failing to report campaign contributions and expenditures. The PAC’s financial mismanagement resulted in unreported contributions totaling over $21,000 and unauthorized expenditures exceeding $9,000.

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RELATED STORY: Robert Burns faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to COVID-19-related wire fraud.

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During the hearing, Burns admitted to errors in managing the PAC’s finances but characterized them as “technical and administrative” rather than malicious. He attributed his violations to inexperience with campaign finance laws and claimed to have taken steps to educate others to prevent similar mistakes.

Despite his assertions of remorse, the commission found his explanations unconvincing. The Final Order emphasized that Burns failed to make good faith efforts to comply with election laws, ignored 84 letters from the state, and disregarded outreach from election officials.

Furthermore, the commission noted that Burns had no systematic method for tracking reporting deadlines and failed to consult legal resources available to him.

Financially, Burns testified that he has a monthly income of approximately $6,068, mostly from his military service. He reported having no savings, no real estate holdings, and minimal assets, stating that his vehicle was recently totaled.

Given the severity of the violations and Burns’ willful disregard for compliance, the commission determined that a total fine of $24,500 was appropriate.

The penalty, which amounts to roughly one-third of Burns’ annual income, was imposed to serve as a deterrent against future campaign finance violations.

CLICK HERE to see the Final Order of Penalties from the State of Florida.

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FINAL ORDER:

On March 18, 2020, Mr. Burns registered Friends of Florida as a political committee (PAC) with the Florida Elections Division. Mr. Burns was the sole member of Friends of Florida and appointed himself chairperson and treasurer of the committee.

The Division of Florida canceled Friends of Florida’s registration as a political committee by order dated February 19, 2021.

The Partial Final Order concluded that Mr. Burns committed the following 20 violations: five violations of section 106.19(1)(b) for failing to report contributions on Friends of Florida’s 2020 M5, 2020 P1A, 2020 P6, 2020 P7, and 2020 G3A reports; ten violations of section 106.19(1)(c) for failing to include information when he failed to report contributions and expenditures on the committee’s 2020 M5, 2020 P1, 2020 P2A, 2020 P4, 2020 P7, 2020 G1, 2020 G2, 2020 G2A, 2020 G3, and 2020 G3A reports; and five violations of section 106.19(1)(d) for authorizing expenses without sufficient funds on deposit in the campaign depository.

The Partial Final Order found that Mr. Burns failed to report contributions totaling $9,515.75 during the 2020 M5 reporting period; contributions totaling $2,000.00 during the 2020 P1A reporting period; contributions totaling $3.00 during the 2020 P6 reporting period;
contributions totaling $6,656.50 during the 2020 P7 reporting period; and contributions totaling $3,111.83 during the 2020 G3A reporting period.

The Partial Final Order found that Mr. Burns made or authorized expenditures without sufficient funds on deposit in the amounts of $4,476.75 on May 27, 2020; $1,010.95 on May 29, 2020; $2,667.58 on August 18, 2020; $900.00 on August 19, 2020; and $25.07 on September 22, 2020.

The Partial Final Order concluded that Friends of Florida committed the following 29 violations: four violations of section 106.07(7) for failing to file notices of no activity for the 2020 P2, 2020 P3, 2020 P5, and 2020 P7A reporting periods; six violations of section 106.143(1)(c) for paying for and publishing six political advertisements that did not include the required statutory disclaimer as set forth in section 106.143(1)(c); four violations of section 106.19(1)(b) for failing to report contributions on the committee’s 2020 P1A, 2020 P6, 2020 P7, and 2020 G3A reports; ten violations of section 106.19(1)(c) for failing to include information when the committee failed to report contributions and expenditures on its 2020 M5, 2020 P1, 2020 P2A, 2020 P4, 2020 P7, 2020 G1, 2020 G2, 2020 G2A, 2020 G3, and 2020 G3A reports; and five violations of section 106.19(1)(d) for authorizing expenses without sufficient funds on deposit in the campaign depository.

The Partial Final Order found that Friends of Florida failed to report contributions totaling: $2,000.00 during the 2020 P1A reporting period; $3.00 during the 2020 P6 reporting period; $6,656.50 during the 2020 P7 reporting period; and $3,111.83 during the 2020 G3A reporting period. Mr. Burns failed to report these same contributions, as set forth in Finding of Fact 4 above.

The Partial Final Order found that Friends of Florida made or authorized expenditures without sufficient funds on deposit in the amount of: $4,476.75 on May 27, 2020; $1,010.95 on May 29, 2020; $2,667.58 on August 18, 2020; $900.00 on August 19, 2020; and $25.07 on September 22, 2020. Mr. Burns made or authorized these same expenditures, as set forth in Finding of Fact 5 above.

The evidence established that Mr. Burns used the Friends of Florida bank account to pay himself for “campaign consulting services” without the benefit of any sort of contractual arrangement or other brake on his ability to withdraw money from the account at his whim.

Took Cash from the Campaign Depository from Multiple ATMs in Poker Rooms

Burns took cash from the campaign depository from multiple ATMs in poker rooms, sometimes making back-to-back withdrawals on the same day. Burns withdrew sums of money even when the campaign depository did not have funds on account to cover those withdrawals. The account was at such a substantial deficit for an extended period of time that the bank closed the account and wrote off the deficit balance.

The gravity of Mr. Burns’ offenses might have been lessened if his protestations of good faith mistakes were at all credible. However, the facts set forth in the Partial Final Order established that, whatever remorse Mr. Burns feels after the fact, his actions were knowing, willful, and remarkably cavalier in their disregard of the requirements of Chapter 106.

Mr. Burns testified that, at the time of the hearing, he had approximately $300.00 in his checking account. He stated that he has no savings account, money market account, and no investments in the form of stocks, mutual funds, savings bonds, annuities, or certificates of deposit.

At the hearing, Mr. Burns admitted to making mistakes in the management of his political committee, but stated that these mistakes “weren’t out of malice but due to my inexperience with the complex web of campaign finance laws.” He described the violations as “technical and administrative causing no harm to the electoral process,” neglecting the fact that an informed electorate is a primary goal of the campaign finance laws.

Burns spoke of his efforts to correct the mistakes he made, but those efforts were limited to negotiating through his attorney with the FEC to settle many of the other charges brought against him and Friends of Florida.

Burns testified that these settlements “demonstrate my willingness to take responsibility for my errors and work to resolve them equitably.” Mr. Burns stated that he has begun working to educate others as to the requirements of the campaign finance laws “to help them avoid the same pitfalls that I encountered.”

Whatever Mr. Burns’ subsequent actions, the facts found in the Partial Final Order established a pattern of nonreporting and a lack of effort to become familiar with the Florida Election Code.

Burns had no system in place to track when reports or notices were due, made no effort to consult the statutes for clarification, and did not review materials the Division provided to him.

Ignored 84 Letters from the State

Burns ignored the advice of the Division. He failed to respond to repeated phone calls from Division personnel and ignored 84 letters sent to his post office box by the Division.

Burns displayed a cavalier attitude toward his fiduciary duties as treasurer for Friends of Florida. As noted above, he took cash from the campaign account from multiple ATMs in poker rooms, sometimes making back-to-back withdrawals on the same day, all for unspecified “services rendered.”

As noted in the Partial Final Order, Mr. Burns’ excuse about the lost electronic filing credentials was a classic example of the “dog ate my homework” excuse. Mr. Burns offered no defense as to his handling of the committee’s funds other than to assert his entitlement to be paid for his consulting work without offering any rationale or accounting method to explain the connection between the amounts he withdrew and the work he performed.

On the whole, Mr. Burns made no attempt at good faith compliance with the provisions of chapters 106 and 104 during the period he was actively engaged in running Friends of Florida. His testimony as to his subsequent actions was self-serving and disingenuous.

Mr. Burns credibly testified that he has a monthly income of $6,068.71, or $72,824.52 per year, subject to annual cost of living adjustments, all attributable to his military service.

He lives in rented accommodations with his wife and son, and shares custody of his two daughters from a previous marriage. He has no savings, owns no real property or intangible investments, and pays $187.00 monthly in child support. His car was recently totaled. While not impoverished, Mr. Burns is not a wealthy man.

On the other hand, the Division proved by clear and convincing evidence that Mr. Burns did not show good faith attempts to comply with the law and that his acts and omissions were of significant gravity.

The undersigned concludes, after viewing the evidence in full, that the application of a civil penalty equal to three times the amount involved in each illegal act committed by Mr. Burns and Friends of Florida would be excessive.

It is understood that a treble damages provision such as that in section 106.19(2) is intended to be an exemplary deterrent to others, but that point may be made short of reducing Mr. Burns to beggary.

Section 106.265(1)(a) provides for civil penalties in the form of fines not to exceed $2,500 per count. The undersigned concludes that a fine of $500 per count will be sufficient to deter Mr. Burns from further violations and set an example for other potential violators of the campaign finance laws.

This totals $24,500, slightly more than one-third of Mr. Burns’ annual income, which is hardship enough to serve the purposes of the statutory scheme.

ORDER

Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is ORDERED:

1. As to DOAH Case No. 23-2658 (FEC Case No. 20-446), Friends of Florida is fined $500 each for Count 8, Counts 14 through 18, Count 26, and Count 27, for a total fine of $4,000.
2. As to DOAH Case 23-2659 (FEC Case No. 20-444), Robert Burns is fined $500 each for Count 8, Counts 14 through 18, and Count 26, for a total fine of $3,500.

As to DOAH Case No. 23-2660 (FEC Case No. 20-343), Robert William Burns, III, is fined $500 each for Counts 3 through 6, Counts 7 through 11, and Counts 12 through 15, for a total fine of $6,500.

As to DOAH Case No. 23-2661 (FEC Case No. 20-341), Friends of Florida is fined $500 each for Counts 2 through 5, Counts 7 through 9, Counts 11 through 14, Counts 15 through 18, and Counts 21 through 25, for a total fine of $10,000.

As to DOAH Case No. 23-2662 (FEC Case No. 20-259), Friends of Florida is fined $500 for the single violation.

DONE AND ORDERED this 10th day of February 2025, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida.

CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT ROBERT BURNS III GUILTY PLEA FOR FEDERAL PPP LOAN FRAUD 

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