Nassau County’s Ocean, Highway & Port Authority is the governing body for the Fernandina Port, and has policy-making, budgeting, and general oversight responsibilities for all port activities. Its five members come from the five voting districts of Nassau County that are also used for county commission and school board seats.
Two candidates are seeking the District 2 seat: Jimmy Dubberly and Scott Moore. As both candidates are Republicans, and no Democrats or other candidates filed to enter the race, their August primary will be open to all voters, regardless of party affiliation.
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News4Jax sent a questionnaire to each candidate asking about their background and their views on several issues. Scroll down to read the responses of those seeking your vote -- in their own words.
Note: Responses are sorted alphabetically by party and are presented exactly as submitted, with no editing by News4Jax staff.
Jimmy Dubberly
This candidate has not yet responded to email and phone invitations to complete the News4JAX candidate questionnaire. If any responses are received, they will be promptly added to this space.
Scott Moore
Occupation: Political Candidate
Age: 64
Family: Wife - Nicole Moore (Sparkman)
Four children
Five grandchildren
Education: Associate of Applied Science in Intelligence Studies from the USAF
Graduated with honors from the US Customs Service Academy
Political experience: I ran for the Florida Legislature in the 2022 cycle.
I have worked in paid positions on and supporting numerous Republican political campaigns.
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
Return OHPA to its position as an economic engine for all of Nassau County – OHPA should be more than just the Port of Fernandina. I pledge to expand OHPA to provide opportunities in Callahan, Hilliard, Yulee and the rest of Nassau County.
Develop New Lines of Business – The Florida Legislature gave OHPA tremendous authority to develop public and private partnerships. I pledge to seek out public and private business opportunities to help OHPA become financially stable and deliver the service to the county the legislature envisioned.
Stop Throwing Good Money After Bad – OHPA has entered into agreements that have proven to be less than ideal. I pledge to work every day to identify and extricate OHPA from these bad agreements and negotiate agreements that are fair. BUT until such time as we can negotiate fairer agreements, I will live up to the terms of our existing agreements and pay our bills.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
Born and raised in the tide-water area of the Chesapeake Bay, Scott’s blue-collar and public service roots run deep. Scott was raised in White Plains Maryland by his mother, a homemaker, and stepfather, who was an electrician.
Scott entered the United States Air Force as an Intelligence Analyst. During his 23 years of military service, Scott commanded mobile intelligence collection and reporting teams responsible for ferreting out information that could threaten US military operations. Scott is a decorated military war veteran who deployed during combat to Desert Storm, Haiti and Panama. He helped dismantle the Berlin Wall and stood against Communist aggression along the DMZ in South Korea.
After completing his active military service, Scott received an appointment to the US Customs Service and graduated with honors from the US Customs Service Academy. While working as a Marine Enforcement Officer with the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection he worked in and around Florida and Caribbean maritime ports to identify criminal activity and take actions to arrest, dismantle and convict international criminal organizations threatening the security and safety of the people of the United States.
Scott progressed during his 20 years with Customs and Border Protection serving as it’s first National Director of Investigation and ultimately was selected to be the Director of Marine Operations for the Caribbean theater. In this position, Scott shepherded the five marine bases he led through three major hurricanes and their subsequent multi-million-dollar recoveries and was capable of continuing operations that lead to record quantities of narcotics being taken off American and Florida streets and the arrest of a record number of criminals.
After retiring from the Department of Homeland Security, Scott went to work as a Special Agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement where he was tasked with investigating terrorist groups and individuals threatening the safety and security of Florida, her citizens, her waterways and her ports.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
That under my leadership, the Ocean Highway and Port Authority paid it’s bills, improved safety at the Port of Fernandina, stopped spending money recklessly, worked collaboratively with the City of Fernandina and Nassau County, and provided businesses opportunities for all of Nassau County as the Florida Legislature directed us to do.
Campaign website: Moore4Florida.com
Campaign social media: Facebook