At a meeting that barely had a quorum, the Lowndes County School District Board moved briskly through a light agenda but did take the first steps in reducing its bond debt.
With board president Robert Barksdale and Wesley Barrett absent, the board voted 2-1 to approve securing an underwriter to explore the possibility of refinancing a pair of bonds totaling about $7 million.
Superintendent Sam Allison recommended the measure.
“Right now, there’s a lot of uncertainty, mainly, I think, because of the pandemic,” Allison told the board. “The interest rate right now is just over 3 percent and I think we could refinance and get it a little lower.”
Allison said refinancing could save anywhere from $250,000 to $300,000 on the two bonds, which expire in 2030 and 2031. Both bonds are being repaid through three property tax mills the district dedicates to general capital improvements.
“We could save some money or maybe pay the debt off a year early,” Allison said. “All I’m really asking for is that we contact an underwriter and see if this is something that would make sense. What are the fees? What are the restrictions? Can we even do it? I don’t think this is something we could know with having an underwriter look into it.”
Board member Jacqueline Gray, who ultimately cast the lone “no” vote, asked Allison if the district would be committed to paying the underwriter’s fees in the event the board decided not to refinance.
“We would only pay the underwriter if we went ahead with the refinancing,” Allison said. “That would be something we would factor into the costs.”
The proposal passed with “yes” votes from board Vice President Jane Kilgore and Brian Clark.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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