Afterwards, Rooney attended Lehigh University, where he graduated with a Master of Business Administration in 1992, and then moved to the state of Florida later that year.

Rooney ran to replace him in the 83rd District, which spanned across Palm Beach County, and encountered Nancy Cardone and Francisco Rodriguez in the Republican primary, whom he defeated comfortably with 61% of the vote.

He campaigned on making Florida more business-friendly, specifically supporting efforts to lower the corporate income tax rate and to "streamline the permitting and licensing processes.

He was unopposed in the primary, and in the general election, encountered Democratic nominee David Lutrin, a physical education teacher.

Rooney was endorsed for re-election by the Palm Beach Post, which suggested that "he could bring a different tone to a Florida House that has been far too ideological" due to his desire for consensus-building, bipartisan legislation.