January 23, 2009

Dear Friends:

This week was significant for Americans as many of us watched the swearing-in and inaugural address of President Barack Obama. Over the years, each inaugural address I've watched has reminded me of why I chose a career in public service, first as a law enforcement officer and now as the Secretary of DBPR.

The reason is simple: what we do in government, day after day, has a very real effect on people's quality of life. We're not just shuffling paper, but rather we are helping Floridians embark on new careers or continue their current ones. Ultimately, we support the people who make Florida's economy thrive and grow.

That's why everything we do at DBPR, including public awareness, is done with the consideration that we are working toward making Floridians' lives safer and better. One of our public awareness campaigns is aimed at combating unlicensed activity and is called the "Ugly Business" campaign, and you will start seeing our Public Service Announcements and Web ads on the Internet and TV in about one week.

We are unveiling two new real estate PSAs encouraging citizens to check licenses and work only with licensed real estate professionals. We would like to thank the Florida Association of Realtors for their support of the unlicensed activity media campaign. You can get a sneak peak of these PSAs by clicking on the link in the upper, left-hand column of this "Bottom Line."

Many of us have received our W-2s and are gearing up for tax season. That's why, beginning in February, we will run ads directing people to work with state-licensed Certified Public Accountants. Ads will run in the Tampa, Orlando and South Florida online "Business Journals," Google Ad Words will pop up when a Florida consumer does a search related to taxes, and radio underwriting will be heard on Florida's public broadcasting stations.

This is only the beginning. We will continue to execute the "Ugly Business" media campaign against unlicensed activity through the end of the fiscal year, and I look forward to keeping you updated on the work that we’re doing to protect Floridians and visitors.

Sincerely,

Charles W. Drago
Secretary

Department of Business and
Professional Regulation
1940 North Monroe Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
Customer Contact Center:
850.487.1395
www.MyFloridaLicense.com