OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) Board of Directors heard an update from a committee reviewing a report on TSET by the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT).
The LOFT report was released in June and the TSET Board of Directors created a committee at their August meeting to examine the findings.
The committee is chaired by Bruce Benjamin, vice-chair of the TSET Board of Directors, and includes board members Marshall Snipes and Susanna Gattoni and former board members Casey Kilblane and Jim Hess, chair and director of the School of Health Care Administration at Oklahoma State University.
“The TSET Board of Directors remains committed to working with the state of Oklahoma and its people to address persistent and widespread public health challenges, specifically tobacco use and obesity which are the two leading causes of preventable disease and death in our state,” said Benjamin. “The LOFT report offers an outside perspective, and we want to examine its findings and recommendations to ensure that TSET is effectively fulfilling its constitutional mandate.”
In addition to considering LOFT recommendations, the committee will evaluate the environment in which TSET operates, provide knowledge and expertise to TSET leadership on evolving issues and help communicate the agency’s mission and programs to the state.
“TSET was created by voters in 2000 and its structure and mission were reaffirmed by voters in 2020,” said TSET Board of Directors chair Michelle Stephens. “TSET’s Board of Directors acknowledges the will of the voters and will continue to pursue innovations and process improvements to better serve our citizens.”
The committee will report its actions and recommendations to the Board of Directors in an ongoing effort to provide proven and effective strategies in public health and disease prevention.
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The Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) serves as a partner and bridge builder for organizations working toward shaping a healthier future for all Oklahomans. TSET provides leadership at the intersections of health by working across the state, by cultivating innovative and life-changing research, and by working across public and private sectors to develop, support, implement and evaluate creative strategies to take advantage of emerging opportunities to improve the public's health. To learn more, visit TSET.ok.gov.