State Treasurer Steven Grossman, Chairman of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), and Jack McCarthy, MSBA Executive Director, today announced that the MSBA has expedited over $46 million in payments to 40 cities, towns, and regional school districts for school building projects that were approved under the former school building assistance program administered by the Department of Education. The MSBA is able to make these payments up to six months ahead of schedule because of its effective fiscal management.
The accelerated payments are intended to assist communities with increased investment earnings and may also reduce short-term local borrowing costs related to cash flow needs during the remainder of Fiscal Year 2013. The MSBA anticipates that this initiative will serve as a useful tool to assist communities with meeting cash flow needs in this challenging economy.
“I am delighted that, as a result of responsible management and strong fiscal stewardship, the MSBA has the flexibility to expedite payments to communities and districts, providing them with much needed financial relief,” Treasurer Grossman said.
“By accelerating these payments, the MSBA is providing cash flow to municipalities in these difficult economic times and allowing communities the opportunity to increase their investment earnings,” said MSBA Executive Director Jack McCarthy.
The MSBA partners with Massachusetts communities to support the design and construction of educationally-appropriate, flexible, sustainable, and cost-effective public school facilities. Since its creation, the MSBA has made more than $9.1 billion in timely payments to cities, towns, and regional school districts for school construction projects. These payments have saved municipalities over $2.9 billion in avoided local interest costs and have provided much needed cash flow to communities.
