Key Takeaways
- • Oklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ, who chairs the TSET Board of Investors, steered a $2 billion investment consulting contract away from incumbent NEPC toward Innovest Portfolio Solutions, according to an Oklahoma Watch investigation republished by KGOU.
- • Innovest had been a client of Russ advisor Jerry Bowyer, and the firm partnered with Russ allies at the State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF) during the bid period, including a project involving payment from Innovest to SFOF.
- • Russ directed the consultant to conduct so-called "Oklahoma values" tests of portfolio managers, tying investment criteria to his conservative religious politics.
- • Innovest and its executives publicly described secular asset managers and BlackRock as anti-Christian and framed the work as "a fight of good vs. evil," according to the report.
- • Government procurement experts quoted in the report said the reported contacts raise questions about potential favoritism; Russ, his office, and the other named parties did not respond to comment requests.
Summary
Oklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ, who also serves as a minister and chairs the Board of Investors of the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET), has used state investment pools against corporations pursuing climate and diversity initiatives, according to an Oklahoma Watch investigation published by KGOU. The report alleges that Russ steered a contract managing roughly $2 billion in taxpayer money to Innovest Portfolio Solutions, a Christian investment firm, over NEPC, TSET's longtime consultant, which was fired last year despite delivering record returns.
The Board of Investors issued the request for proposals last year. According to the report, the decision came down to two finalists: NEPC and Innovest. Innovest had been a client of Bowyer, a Russ advisor who is an Episcopal deacon, and the firm partnered on multiple projects with SFOF figures during the consideration period, including Bowyer. At least one project involved a payment from Innovest to SFOF. Russ directed the firm to conduct "Oklahoma values" tests of portfolio managers.
The report also details overlapping relationships within the State Financial Officers Foundation, which has recognized Russ and his deputy Jordan Harvey, and which is part of a conservative anti-ESG network funded in part by Leonard Leo. Russ, SFOF CEO O.J. Oleka, former SFOF CEO Derek Kreifels, and Bowyer have participated in the same events, including the Consumers' Research Summit. Kreifels reportedly said that NEPC and other consultants should be pressured because they "all love the ESG space." Innovest hosted a Christian institutional investors conference in April and sponsored a panel that Russ attended, with SFOF paying his travel according to an ethics filing. Russ also appeared on a panel with Bowyer and Kreifels at a Sovereign's Capital conference held at the Museum of the Bible; it is unclear whether Russ paid his own travel, as he filed no ethics disclosure for it.
Innovest executives made public statements in the report that describe the industry in religious terms. CEO Rich Todd said that "the devil has taken advantage of our Christian assets" and that the fight is one of "good vs. evil," and he characterized BlackRock CEO Larry Fink as a leader of a movement rooted in socialism. Bowyer said secular firms not aligned with the Christian faith were "completely inappropriate" for red states.
Lisa Graves, founder of True North Research, told Oklahoma Watch that if a vendor in an open bid maintained a close relationship with an advisor to the official overseeing the contract and sponsored an event tied to both, "that would raise questions about potential favoritism in my view." Audio of the June 18 TSET board meeting, recorded by Oklahoma Watch, reportedly showed a colder reception for NEPC's Doug Moseley than for Innovest President Wendy Dominguez. Russ, Oleka, Kreifels, Bowyer, Dominguez, and Todd did not respond to requests for comment.
The Board of Investors issued the request for proposals last year. According to the report, the decision came down to two finalists: NEPC and Innovest. Innovest had been a client of Bowyer, a Russ advisor who is an Episcopal deacon, and the firm partnered on multiple projects with SFOF figures during the consideration period, including Bowyer. At least one project involved a payment from Innovest to SFOF. Russ directed the firm to conduct "Oklahoma values" tests of portfolio managers.
The report also details overlapping relationships within the State Financial Officers Foundation, which has recognized Russ and his deputy Jordan Harvey, and which is part of a conservative anti-ESG network funded in part by Leonard Leo. Russ, SFOF CEO O.J. Oleka, former SFOF CEO Derek Kreifels, and Bowyer have participated in the same events, including the Consumers' Research Summit. Kreifels reportedly said that NEPC and other consultants should be pressured because they "all love the ESG space." Innovest hosted a Christian institutional investors conference in April and sponsored a panel that Russ attended, with SFOF paying his travel according to an ethics filing. Russ also appeared on a panel with Bowyer and Kreifels at a Sovereign's Capital conference held at the Museum of the Bible; it is unclear whether Russ paid his own travel, as he filed no ethics disclosure for it.
Innovest executives made public statements in the report that describe the industry in religious terms. CEO Rich Todd said that "the devil has taken advantage of our Christian assets" and that the fight is one of "good vs. evil," and he characterized BlackRock CEO Larry Fink as a leader of a movement rooted in socialism. Bowyer said secular firms not aligned with the Christian faith were "completely inappropriate" for red states.
Lisa Graves, founder of True North Research, told Oklahoma Watch that if a vendor in an open bid maintained a close relationship with an advisor to the official overseeing the contract and sponsored an event tied to both, "that would raise questions about potential favoritism in my view." Audio of the June 18 TSET board meeting, recorded by Oklahoma Watch, reportedly showed a colder reception for NEPC's Doug Moseley than for Innovest President Wendy Dominguez. Russ, Oleka, Kreifels, Bowyer, Dominguez, and Todd did not respond to requests for comment.
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