State Treasurer Tim Cahill, Chairman of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (“MSBA”) and Katherine Craven, MSBA Executive Director, today announced that the MSBA has made a $13,767,899 payment to the City of Worcester. It is the first payment the city has received for the new Worcester North High School which is currently under construction. The total MSBA grant for Worcester North High School is $45.9 million.
Worcester is being reimbursed for the state’s share of the project through the MSBA’s “pay-as-you-build” Pro Pay System, and will be reimbursed for eligible project costs during construction. After a community enters into a Project Funding Agreement with the MSBA and submits project costs that have been incurred and paid locally, the MSBA audits the submitted invoices and reimburses the district for eligible project costs.
“We will be reimbursing Worcester as the new high school is constructed,” stated State Treasurer Tim Cahill. “This prevents the city from having to issue debt for the MSBA’s share of the project, saving the taxpayers of Worcester millions in avoided interest costs.”
“The MSBA’s Progress Payments offer communities predictable, regular payments they can count on and that can help them manage their cash flow,” stated Katherine Craven.
The MSBA is collaborating with municipalities to equitably invest $2.5 billion in schools across the Commonwealth by finding the right-sized, most fiscally responsible and educationally appropriate solutions to create safe and sound learning environments. The MSBA is committed to protecting the taxpayer’s dollar by improving the school building grant process and avoiding the mistakes of the past in the funding and construction of school facilities. The MSBA has reformed the Commonwealth’s formerly rampant and unsustainable program, which had accumulated $11 billion in debt.
To date, the MSBA has made approximately $6.5 billion in reimbursements to cities, towns and regional school districts for school construction projects. These timely payments have saved municipalities over $2.8 billion in avoided local interest costs and have provided much needed cash flow to municipalities in these difficult economic times.