Chairperson Profile
Oscar Anderson is a native of Central Florida and has extensive
background in government. Since 1992, Oscar served in the legislative and
executive branches at the local, state and federal levels.
From 1998 to 2000, Oscar served as the chief lobbyist for Orange County Chairman
Mel Martinez. When President Bush asked Mel to serve as HUD Secretary, Oscar
moved to Washington, D.C. in 2000. As an integral part of Mel’s senior staff,
Oscar managed the Congressional office and later was promoted to Deputy Chief of
Staff. Oscar specialized in the appropriations process and negotiated the
passage of $75 million for the Administration’s American Dream Downpayment
Initiative.
In 2003, Secretary Colleen Castille asked him to serve as her Chief of Staff at
the Department of Community Affairs. During Oscar’s tenure at DCA, he directed
passage of the landmark Wekiva Parkway and Protection Act legislation. Last
year’s hurricane season put Oscar in position to help deliver timely information
to elected officials and the media, and subsequently focusing state and federal
grant programs to help those communities most impacted by the storms. Most
recently, Oscar had a key role in the passage of the first overhaul to the
state’s growth management laws in 20 years, changing the requirements on local
governments and creating new standards for compliance determinations.