Secretary Shawn Hamilton
Secretary Shawn Hamilton

Secretary Hamilton has worked at  the Florida Department of Environmental Protection  since 2007, where he  has risen  through the ranks of the department.  Early in his career he  served  as ombudsman and public affairs manager in DEP’s Northwest District Office. He was promoted to assistant district director in 2010 and was appointed district director in 2011 and was subsequently promoted to interim deputy secretary of Land and Recreation in 2020 and formally appointed as deputy secretary in 2021.   

Secretary Hamilton has 20 years of experience in the public and private sectors, where he has proven to be an  effective and driven leader with the ability to influence and build trusted and constructive connections with community stakeholders, elected and appointed municipal officials, and organizational team members.    

He served as the agency’s environmental justice coordinator with responsibility for providing statewide guidance on sensitive environmental justice issues  and was  appointed as the principal state liaison for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Justice.   

Secretary Hamilton had provided  effective leadership, incident command, and focused recovery during multiple large-scale natural and industrial emergencies to include Deepwater Horizon oil spill, International Paper Mill explosion, and hurricanes Irma and Michael.    

He also led the creation and execution of reoccurring partnership meetings with the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, Gulf Power, Emerald Coast Utilities and Escambia County.   

Secretary Hamilton has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from  Troy State University  with a minor in business.  He and his wife Charlene have three sons, Christopher, Brandon and Joshua.  

Office of the Secretary

The secretary works alongside more than 2,900 full-time and 1,300 OPS employees to protect Florida's water and natural resources. Along with oversight of the agency's strategic and executive leadership teams, DEP's regulatory programs, ecosystem and restoration programs and land and recreation programs.

The secretary oversees all functions of the department:

  • Ecosystems Restoration oversees Florida water quality, restoration and research, including coastal resources, the Everglades and water restoration assistance.
  • Land and Recreation oversees public lands, including Florida State Parks, the Office of Greenways and Trails and the Division of State Lands.
  • Regulatory Programs oversees the air resource, water resource and waste management divisions; the Florida Geological Survey, the Office of Emergency Response and six regulatory district offices.
  • Division of Administrative Services provides centralized support in the areas of budget and planning, finance and accounting, human resource management and others.
  • Office of General Counsel represents DEP and provides counsel in implementing Florida's top environmental priorities.
  • Office of Inspector General promotes accountability, efficiency and integrity in government.
  • Office of Intergovernmental Programs oversees the state of Florida Clearinghouse and DEP's review of local government comprehensive plans.
  • Office of Legislative Affairs develops and coordinates the department's legislative lobbying efforts and serves as the central point of contact for legislators and their staff.
  • Office of Technology and Information Services provides support services to DEP's divisions and offices in Tallahassee as well as its six regulatory and five park districts across the state.