Post by southsidesignmaker on Dec 16, 2011 11:08:37 GMT -6
Illinois prepaid tuition program stops taking new contracts, study finds 30 percent shortfall
www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-bc-il--prepaidcollegetuition,0,7943095.story
By Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — The state of Illinois' billion-dollar prepaid college tuition program has stopped selling new contracts, at the same time as a new study found the fund has a 30 percent shortfall.
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission plans to give Gov. Pat Quinn and lawmakers comprehensive recommendations on fixing the 13-year-old, $1.1 billion College Illinois program, commission chairwoman Kym Hubbard tells Crain's Chicago Business (http://bit.ly/uJ9NOH). That should happen early next year.
Hubbard said she is confident about the program's future.
"But final decisions must be made by the governor and the General Assembly," she said.
The recommendations could include asking universities and parents who buy new contracts to assume some risks from tuition inflation.
More than 30,000 Illinois families hold contracts for more than 50,000 students in College Illinois, which lets parents lock in tuition costs at public universities years before students go to college. The commission stopped selling contracts on Oct. 1.
A study from March of this year found a 30 percent shortfall in the program. That's the same shortfall found in June 2010, but the new report incorporates lower forecasts on investment returns.
State Rep. Jim Durkin, a Western Springs Republican, plans to introduce legislation in 2012 that would make College Illinois more transparent. Durkin owns a College Illinois contract for his daughter.
"It is important that families know at all times where the fund stands," Durkin said. "At this time advertising, administrative costs, salaries and operational costs are all draining the investment fund and this must stop immediately."
Hubbard said she supports Durkin's efforts.
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Information from: CRAIN'S CHICAGO BUSINESS.
www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/sns-bc-il--prepaidcollegetuition,0,7943095.story
By Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — The state of Illinois' billion-dollar prepaid college tuition program has stopped selling new contracts, at the same time as a new study found the fund has a 30 percent shortfall.
The Illinois Student Assistance Commission plans to give Gov. Pat Quinn and lawmakers comprehensive recommendations on fixing the 13-year-old, $1.1 billion College Illinois program, commission chairwoman Kym Hubbard tells Crain's Chicago Business (http://bit.ly/uJ9NOH). That should happen early next year.
Hubbard said she is confident about the program's future.
"But final decisions must be made by the governor and the General Assembly," she said.
The recommendations could include asking universities and parents who buy new contracts to assume some risks from tuition inflation.
More than 30,000 Illinois families hold contracts for more than 50,000 students in College Illinois, which lets parents lock in tuition costs at public universities years before students go to college. The commission stopped selling contracts on Oct. 1.
A study from March of this year found a 30 percent shortfall in the program. That's the same shortfall found in June 2010, but the new report incorporates lower forecasts on investment returns.
State Rep. Jim Durkin, a Western Springs Republican, plans to introduce legislation in 2012 that would make College Illinois more transparent. Durkin owns a College Illinois contract for his daughter.
"It is important that families know at all times where the fund stands," Durkin said. "At this time advertising, administrative costs, salaries and operational costs are all draining the investment fund and this must stop immediately."
Hubbard said she supports Durkin's efforts.
___
Information from: CRAIN'S CHICAGO BUSINESS.