Principal

Tallahassee

colleen@TheFiorentinoGroup.com

Colleen M. Castille joined The Fiorentino Group in 2011 and serves as a Principal in the firm’s Tallahassee office. With a career in state government spanning 25 years, Colleen has gained a unique perspective on a broad array of state issues. As a former secretary of both the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”) and the Florida Department of Community Affairs (“DCA”), Colleen has had a tremendous impact on Florida’s environmental and energy policies, as well as growth management and planning issues. Colleen has also worked with the Florida Cabinet on a multitude of general governance issues and has expertise in matters relating to the state pension fund, bond finance, the State Board of Education and submerged lands permitting, among others.

Prior to joining The Fiorentino Group, Colleen was a consultant with Go Green Strategies, a firm specializing in developing and expanding business-friendly green policies. At Go Green Strategies, Colleen assisted businesses with startup and growth phases, represented land owners in conservation sales to public and private purchasers, and provided consulting services to commercial industry real estate developers and homebuilders on how to implement green development within growth management and permitting laws. During this time, Colleen also served as vice president, board member and owner of EarthSteps, LLC, where she engaged in energy efficiency retrofits for existing buildings, green design for new buildings and demand-side management for residents and businesses.

In March 2004, Colleen was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to serve as secretary of the DEP. In this distinguished capacity, Colleen reported to the Governor on all local, state and federal matters regarding the environment in Florida, and managed 4,700 employees and a $2.6 billion annual budget. Under her leadership, DEP achieved many feats, chief among them being the formulation and passage of the 2006 Florida Energy Act, the first statewide energy policy since 1978. Colleen was also instrumental in strengthening Florida’s building code to help resist hurricane force winds across the state. Prior to serving as secretary of DEP, Colleen was appointed by Governor Bush in 2003 as secretary of the DCA, where she advised the Governor on all local and state policy and budget matters regarding growth management, housing and emergency management. In this capacity, Colleen oversaw a senior management team that reviewed more than 200 community growth and development proposals per week, distributed more than $500 million in community and emergency grant money annually, and prepared response and recovery operations for manmade and natural disasters.

Before her appointment to DCA, Colleen held many positions within the Florida executive branch. From 1999-2002, Colleen was chief cabinet aide to Governor Jeb Bush, where she advised the Governor on all Cabinet-related issues. From 1995-1998, she served as chief cabinet aide to Education Commissioner Frank Brogan, whom she advised on voting-related matters before the State Board of Education. She also served as senior cabinet aide to Insurance Commissioner and Treasurer Tom Gallagher from 1989-1994, where she led and coordinated an effort to reduce workers’ compensation losses for all state agencies and achieved a significant reduction in losses the following year.

Colleen also has extensive campaign and fundraising experience, having served as deputy director and finance director for the Bob Martinez Inaugural Committee. She also served as deputy finance director for the Gallagher for Governor campaign.

Colleen has a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs from Florida State University and is a licensed Florida Real Estate salesperson.