Jacksonville council rejects bid to withdraw subpoena for former JTA CEO

A Jacksonville City Council committee rejected a request to withdraw a subpoena requiring former Jacksonville Transportation Authority CEO Nat Ford to testify as part of an investigation into the agency’s finances.RELATED: Fitch downgrades JTA’s credit rating, cites weakened financial resilience amid $40M budget shortfallCouncil member Rahman Johnson asked the Financial Audit and Oversight Select Committee to rescind the subpoena, which Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officers delivered to Ford the day before the meeting. Johnson said Ford should have been given the opportunity to return and testify voluntarily, as the committee had allowed the former CEO of JEA to do.“We didn’t even give him an opportunity to say, ‘You know what, I’ll fly back on my own dime,’” Johnson said. “I believe in people’s integrity. That’s the kind of country we live in — innocent until proven guilty.”The committee is trying to determine why JTA faced a reported $40 million shortfall. Committee Chair Chris Mill