Russell serves as the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Ava Community Energy, overseeing all Financial Operations for the Authority. He has more than 25 years of energy and public finance industry experience. His career focus has been on building and maintaining financial strength for public serving organizations, to help them provide affordable and reliable power resources to customers.
He joined Ava in 2025 after seven years at SMUD where he served as Treasurer and Director of Risk Management, overseeing the Cash, Investment and Debt Management processes, and the Commodity Risk and Insurance programs. Prior to that he was the CFO for the Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA), a JPA formed in southern California to enable member cities to procure and finance affordable power resources for their customers. He also served as the CFO and other roles for the Power Supply Program within California’s Dept. of Water Resources for twelve years, set up in response to the Energy Crisis that ensued in the early 2000s. He is originally from Maryland, moving west 1997, but has lived in Northern California since 2001, currently residing in El Dorado Hills with his fiance and two daughters.