Endowment Fund board asks for pay increases for two investment staff; governor does not recommend

Endowment Fund Investment Board leaders told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on the morning of the hearing that the board has requested a compensation enhancement of roughly $100,000 in FY 2026 to raise pay for two senior investment staff members.

The board’s manager of investments, Chris Anton, told lawmakers the board’s compensation committee and the full board recommended the increases, but discussions with the governor’s office and the Division of Human Resources had not produced a final agreement at the time the budget was submitted. “The recommendations were made by our compensation committee and our board,” Anton said. Board Chairman Thomas Wilford explained the request’s history: it traces back to hiring decisions and an expectation that pay would be “made up over the years.” Wilford said the board’s view is that replacing the staff now would likely require higher pay than current levels.

The request is intended primarily to raise pay for two long‑tenured employees: Anton said the larger share of the requested funding would go to a deputy chief investment officer equivalent, Chris Halverson, who he described as “way below market” relative to comparable positions in nonprofit and governmental funds. At the hearing Anton said Halverson’s requested increase was $54,800 and his own requested increase was $28,400. Wilford said the enhancement request has been repeated in prior years.

Janet Jessup, a budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, framed the Endowment Fund Investment Board’s budget in the committee packet and noted the agency’s personnel costs make up the largest share of its appropriation. She also identified that the Endowment Fund Investment Board manages endowment funds and related administrative funds that are not appropriated in this budget but may be transferred into income funds that agencies can appropriate.

A representative from the governor’s office, identified at the hearing as Miss Wolfe, told the committee the governor’s recommendation did not include the requested staff compensation increases. Wolfe said the Division of Human Resources’ analysis showed the deputy position is “close to policy rate for his pay grade” and that state policy rates are generally not competitive with the private market. “We do not disagree with the board…that it was not competitive with the market,” Wolfe said, but added the governor’s recommendation aligns with state pay policy and recent increases provided to similar state employees.

Committee members asked why the board had requested the increase and whether turnover risk or private market competition motivated the request. Wilford and Anton replied the request responds to historically low starting pay for some hires and to changes in the size and complexity of the endowment portfolio managed by the board over time. Anton said the board now manages about $5 billion in combined funds, up from about $500 million in fixed income when some staff were first hired.

The governor’s recommendation omitted the compensation enhancement but supported requested adjustments for general inflation and technical hardware. No formal committee action on the compensation request was recorded during the hearing.

Looking ahead, Anton and Wilford said they would continue discussions with the governor’s office and DHR. Jessup and committee members did not record a motion or vote during the presentation.