An Alabama House committee was to meet today to discuss SB31, which is intended to provide Birmingham-Southern College a $30 million loan.
Sen. Jabo Waggoner (R-Vestavia Hills) is the sponsor of the bill which would shift control of the Distressed Institutions of Higher Education loan program from State Treasurer Young Boozer to Jim Purcell, who is the Alabama Commission on Higher Education Executive Director.
Birmingham-Southern’s loan application was denied last year by Boozer after he found that the college did not meet guidelines that the loan program had in place, including “adequate collateral and an adequate financial restructuring plan,” according to AL.com.
The bill, which has already passed in the Alabama Senate, would end in it being significantly more likely that Birmingham-Southern would receive the money by making changes to the program’s requirements.
The loan program was created last year in direct response to the college’s request for aid from the state after BSC said it would in all likelihood have to close its doors without the funding.
The school’s goal is to receive between $150 million and $200 million from a private endowment, and use the state’s loan as a bridge until it can receive the further funding.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP
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