Bloomington Public Schools has now borrowed the next big piece of its building-maintenance money. On Oct. 26 the ISD 271 school board voted 6-0 to approve the sale of $41,510,000 in General Obligation Facilities Maintenance Bonds, Series 2026B, to JP Morgan. Director Nelly Korman was absent.
Bloomington Public SchoolsBEC-TVOn a 6-0 roll call vote, with Director Nelly Korman absent, the board ratified the sale of $41,510,000 in General Obligation Facilities Maintenance Bonds, Series 2026B.10/26
The sale happened the same day as the vote. Ehlers, the district's financial advisor, told the board the bonds went on the market at 9:30 that morning and drew 15 bidders. JP Morgan had the lowest bid. Under the resolution, the board awarded the bonds to the lowest bidder.
The board then voted on where the money will sit until it's spent. It approved an agreement that makes Ehlers Investment Partners LLC the investment advisor for the bond proceeds and names U.S. Bank as the depository. Rod Zivkovich, the district's executive director of finance and support services, gave the reason this matters. He pointed to arbitrage payments. Those payments come due when tax-exempt borrowed money earns more interest while invested than the district pays on the bonds, and the IRS wants that difference back. A professional advisor tracking the proceeds helps the district manage what it owes.
That finishes the board's part of the borrowing. The next things to watch are how the district spends the money on maintenance projects and how the repayment shows up in future levies. The board's next regular meeting is Nov. 23. The district also changed its December schedule: Dec. 14 is now a regular business meeting instead of a study session, and the Dec. 28 meeting is canceled for winter break.
