Oklahoma is boycotting banks hostile to oil and gas while recruiting green energy companies

Stitt has said he’s glad the new law will keep financial firms from pushing their political agendas with state pension fund dollars. But the governor has also been leading the charge to bring a solar photovoltaic cell manufacturing facility and an electric vehicle battery plant to Oklahoma by dangling taxpayer-funded incentives in front of two multinational companies that take pride in their eco-conscious policies.

A Democratic state senator said Stitt’s behavior is hypocritical, but the governor said there’s no connection between the new law and his business recruitment efforts.

State Treasurer Todd Russ has blacklisted 13 financial firms as a result of Oklahoma’s Energy Discrimination Elimination Act, which bars state contracts and investments with banks that “boycott” oil and gas firms. BlackRock, Wells Fargo and Co., JPMorgan Chase and Co., and Bank of America Corp. are among the blacklisted companies, although some of them deny the allegation that they “boycott” fossil fuels.

“We feel that the banks that were on that list can make a very strong argument for why they shouldn’t be on that list,” said Oklahoma Bankers Association President and CEO Adrian Beverage.

Russ’ office will reevaluate the list every 90 days.

Stitt has praised the new law and taken steps to sever ties with some of the financial firms in question.

As the chairman of the Commissioners of the Land Office — a state agency that oversees a $2.5 billion real estate and investment portfolio to support public education — Stitt on Wednesday moved for the commission to end its financial management contracts with BlackRock and JP Morgan Asset Management.

“We’re trying to get their attention that they’re not going to use our funds to attack some of our industries — our oil and gas industry, specifically,” Stitt said.

Most, if not all, of the state’s retirement systems currently work with some of the blacklisted companies.

The governor was on the front lines of business recruitment efforts that led international green energy company Enel North America to decide to build a solar panel manufacturing facility at the Tulsa Port of Inola. For more than a year, Stitt and other state officials have tried to entice Panasonic to build a massive electric vehicle battery plant in Pryor.

Enel says it is “fully committed to the fight against climate change” and touts its environmental, social and governance rankings. Panasonic has pledged to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions as part of its environmental and sustainability policies.

Conservative backlash against corporate ESG policies are at the heart of Oklahoma’s Energy Discrimination Elimination Act. Through such policies, companies pledge, among other things, to consider the environmental impact of fossil fuels when making business decisions. Most major companies, including oil and gas businesses, have adopted ESG policies.

Stitt said comparing the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act to efforts to lure renewable energy businesses to Oklahoma is like comparing apples and oranges.

The governor said he welcomes all companies to Oklahoma, noting his preference for an “all-the-above” approach to energy. Stitt said he’d welcome BlackRock if the blacklisted company wanted to move its headquarters to Oklahoma.

“We’re not against it if you’re going to use your own dollars and invest in ESG,” Stitt said. “Just don’t make that a priority with our pension funds. That’s all we’re saying.”

Enel and Panasonic combined could qualify for more than $800 million in taxpayer-funded economic development incentives from the state, meaning some public dollars could flow to the private companies.

Sen. Mary Boren, D-Norman, said the state treasurer is “tone policing” financial firms under the new law, which gives him some latitude to determine what constitutes a “boycott” of fossil fuels.

“The treasurer is in charge of the tone policing, and then you have a governor that’s ignoring that when he’s trying to snag a deal,” she said.

Boren said she thinks the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act could hurt Oklahoma’s economic development efforts.

Culture wars-style laws signaling Oklahoma’s commitment to oil and natural gas could undermine the state’s ability to partner with renewable energy companies, she said.

“It’s hard to take seriously claims that Oklahoma is committed to diversifying our energy economy while, at the same time, picking winners and losers when it comes to investment portfolios,” Boren said.

When it comes to economic development, the state isn’t prioritizing any one energy source over another, said Oklahoma Department of Commerce spokeswoman Becky Samples. But the agency has found some success in targeting businesses in specific energy sectors, she said.

“As the renewable energy sector continues to grow, we want to communicate to businesses and to the world that we are open for business,” Samples said.

She did not respond to a question about whether the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act could impact economic development efforts.

Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, who wrote the 2022 law, which closely resembles laws passed in other red states, said he’s likely to tweak the measure next year because he never intended for the act to apply to cities, counties or other localities.

Stillwater will have to select a new money lender for a $13.5 million infrastructure project because the city can’t work with Bank of America now that the company has been blacklisted, Mayor Will Joyce told The Oklahoman.

McBride said there’s a broader conversation to be had about economic development incentives for companies with ESG policies. But he praised the state’s recent deal with Enel and said he wants Oklahoma to be an energy hub home to experts in oil, gas, wind, hydrogen and solar power.

“I don’t want people to leave here and not do business in Oklahoma,” he said.

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