The state of Michigan continues to bail out the Benton Harbor Area Schools. The district has received another emergency loan – this one for $4.4 million and will be able to meet payroll on July 15 as a result. The Treasury Department’s Emergency Loan Board also approved restructuring the district’s three previous emergency loans, issued in 2012, 2013 and 2015. The latest loan will be repaid over 15 years with an interest rate of 1.85%. The first five years will be interest-free. As for the previous three loans, the payments will be interest-only for the first three years, with principal payments starting in year 4. All told, the district now owes the state just over $7.5 million.
