BlackRock Keeps $7 Billion Oklahoma Pension Contract After Anti-ESG Law Pause

(Bloomberg) -- The Oklahoma Public Employees Retirement System approved the extension of investment contracts with BlackRock Inc., a decision that comes after a judge paused the state’s anti-ESG law targeting the company.

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Pension board members extended the contracts with BlackRock for the management of $7.3 billion of investments at a Thursday meeting, said Joe Fox, executive director of the pension, in an email.

BlackRock is one of the firms on a list of companies that Oklahoma’s Republican Treasurer, Todd Ross, says “boycotts” the fossil fuel industry. The list was created as a result of a state law called the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act.

Read More: Oklahoma Sued Over Anti-ESG Law Targeting BlackRock

In accordance with the legislation, state agencies and political subdivisions — like cities — can’t contract with a firm unless it verifies that it doesn’t engage in energy boycotts. The law also calls for pensions to divest from companies on the list.

Earlier this month, a state district court judge halted enforcement of the law when he granted the request of a retired public employee who had sued to temporarily block the legislation. The BlackRock contract extensions were “held over” from an April pension board meeting because of the company’s position on the state’s restricted list, Fox said.

A spokesperson for BlackRock didn’t provide an immediate comment.

Anti-ESG laws in Republican-led states have hurt BlackRock’s business with public pension clients, which often have billions of dollars to invest on behalf of retirees.

Opers has over $11 billion in assets and serves more than 72,000 members, according to its 2023 financial report. The pension invests in fixed-income and international and domestic equity index funds managed by BlackRock Institutional Trust Company, the report said.

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