SMU, TCU, Other Private Colleges Would Lose Millions Under GOP Plan to Tax High-dollar Endowments

WASHINGTON — Southern Methodist University and other private colleges in Texas and beyond would lose millions of dollars under the House GOP’s just-released tax plan, thanks to a new tax on those schools’ burgeoning endowments.Tucked on the eighth-to-last-page of the 429-page bill, the provision would apply a 1.4 percent tax on some private universities’ net investment income.The levy would hit colleges that have at least 500 students and assets of more than $100,000 per student. That means schools like SMU in University Park, TCU in Fort Worth and Rice University in Houston — all with endowments of a $1 billion or more — would feel a direct impact.In 2014 alone, that trio would’ve taken a combined $6.8 million hit.“Imposing an excise tax on nonprofit private university endowments is a short-sighted move that will only harm students and their families,” said Mary Sue Coleman, president of the Association of American Universities, a group that includes Rice and others.  Continue reading...