Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Contact: Rich Chrismer, 573-751-0290
Blunt Commends Montee for Auditing MOHELA; Seeks Assistance in Examining Loan Authority’s Pension System
JEFFERSON CITY–Governor Matt Blunt sent a letter to State Auditor Susan Montee commending her for announcing her audit of the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) and seeking her assistance in examining sweetheart pension plans for the loan authority’s executives and employees.
“I commend your efforts to audit the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority because its efficient operation would fulfill a critical need for Missouri students,” Blunt said in the letter. “It has been reported to my office that there are duplicate pension plans for MOHELA employees that may not be in compliance with standard practice or applicable law. In light of this, I further request that you review and audit the pension plans and any other “extra” compensation plans for employees and executives of MOHELA.”
The governor also stressed in the letter that some of the issues that may be addressed in an audit are longstanding ones.
“For this reason, I request that your audit include the last ten years of MOHELA operation (1996-2006),” Blunt wrote.
Blunt has said he does not anticipate that Montee’s audit would interfere with his continued push for his Lewis and Clark Discovery Initiative which would sell MOHELA’s non-Missouri loans to fund scholarships for students, classroom construction for colleges and universities and health care for underserved communities.
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