ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration released the results of an independent review by WilmerHale on the decision to commit up to $75 million from the state’s Constitutional Budget Reserve Fund Sub Account into a private equity investment with DigitalBridge.
The decision to commit the money was made in July 2025 by Adam Crum, the state’s former Department of Revenue Commissioner.
Crum is a current candidate for governor after announcing his campaign in August 2025. There are 15 names in the running to take Dunleavy’s seat as of Tuesday.
The three-month investigation by WilmerHale’s attorneys cleared Crum of criminal wrongdoing after analyzing the state’s investment policies to determine if state law and department policies were followed.
The review published 12 findings into the process and decisions that led to the investment. One of the key findings is Crum, as the sole fiduciary of state funds entrusted to the DOR, had the authority to make the investment.
The report also found that Crum pursued the investment both for the benefit of the Constitutional Budget Reserve Fund (CBRF) and the state’s infrastructure development. He believed not pursuing such investments would be a dereliction of his fiduciary obligations to the CBRF.
The report also found that Crum’s process for selecting the DigitalBridge fund — as well as two other private funds in which he intended to invest — did not involve “rigorous” due diligence, and he did not follow DOR protocols designed to assist him in meeting his fiduciary duties in connection with the investment.
In addition, Crum decided not to inform Senate and House Finance Committee Chairs of his CBRF Subaccount investment decision once it was made because he thought that would be an “abdicat[ion] of statutory authority.” He chose not to notify the State Legislature’s Division of Legislative Audit or the Office of Management and Budget prior to the investment for the same reason.
Crum did periodically update Dunleavy’s office and received support for the general concept, the review found. However, the governor’s office did not direct him to pursue the investment.
WilmerHale also recommended four steps the administration can take to prevent deviations from the non-routine investment protocol in the future and ensure due diligence during the investment process.
- Consider administrative action to modify the CBRF’s sole fiduciary structure
- Formalize a requirement to complete and document the steps outlined in the current nonroutine investment protocol
- Require consultation between the COR and the DOL regarding application of statutory fiduciary duty standards to non-routine investments
- Promulgate a regulation implementing procurement procedures surrounding the engagement of outside legal services to clarify that the procurement procedure must be followed even where the State may not be responsible for payment of legal fees under the contract
In response, Dunleavy signed Administrative Order 362 to enact all four recommendations. The DOR notified the House and Senate Finance Committees it sold the DigitalBridge private equity investment, terminating any contractual obligation the State had to invest additional funds from the CBRF.
See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com
Copyright 2026 KTUU. All rights reserved.
link