After a challenging legislative session for the University of Idaho’s planned purchase of a private online university, the school’s president remains committed to the purchase and is seeking an extension to allow more time to negotiate.
University President C. Scott Green told the Idaho Statesman in an interview this month that he hopes to negotiate an extension with Apollo Global Management, the owner of University of Phoenix hedge funds that has more than 85,000 students. The existing agreement had a deadline to complete the sale by May 30 and obtain the necessary bonding.
Green said he hopes to extend the deadline by several months, possibly to allow for legislative action next spring when the Idaho Legislature reconvenes.
“We think we had a bill that was pretty close to what people wanted,” Green said, referring to a bill that was narrowly voted down in the waning days of the session. “The sellers are still very interested, as are we,” he said, adding that the private university’s profits, which currently stand at about $800 million a year in gross revenues, are “probably more attractive than ever.”
But at least one key lawmaker was keeping an eye on campaign donations the president made for this month’s Republican primaries.
When asked about Green’s contributions, Rep. Brent CraneR-Nampa, chairman of the powerful House State Affairs Committee, was surprised by the university president’s involvement in Republican politics. The committee held a two-day hearing during which lawmakers questioned University of Idaho officials about the planned purchase.
“He’s only done serious harm to his cause,” Crane said, adding that he knows of no other university president who has gotten involved in political races before. “Scott Green clearly doesn’t understand politics; he should spend his time on education, not on political races.”
“So no, his problem will be dead,” he said.
Groen aims to extend the agreement
For now, Green and the University of Phoenix told the Statesman they will continue to pursue an extension of the deal.
Despite the May 31 deadline, negotiators have agreed that neither will end the deal at least through June while discussions continue, university spokesperson Jodi Walker told the Statesman by email. Any changes to the purchase agreement would have to be approved by the university’s Board of Regents in a public meeting.
“We are optimistic that we can find a path forward with the University of Idaho and look forward to continued conversations with leaders across the state,” Phoenix spokesperson Andrea Smiley told the Statesman by email.
Green acknowledged that Phoenix has received offers from other buyers, which likely means an extension won’t be exclusive until the deal hits the bond market. And he said the university would “simply walk away” if the school, Apollo and government officials were not on the same page.
“We think we’re all almost on the same page,” he said. “Now the only question is: Do we think we have a transaction that everyone can support?”
The University of Idaho’s planned $550 million purchase, which university officials and the Idaho State Board of Education say would enable the innovation needed to meet changing college demographics, was thwarted this year by a skeptical legislature, whose attorney argued the regulation violated the state constitution.
Idaho’s land-grant university in Moscow planned to purchase the University of Phoenix through a nonprofit, Four Three Education. The school expects the private university’s big profits will bring the state millions in profits, in addition to annual financing of up to $60 million needed to pay off bond debt.
But Phoenix has a bad reputation due to past scandals, which prompted the school to settle with federal regulators for hundreds of millions after the school was accused of misleading advertising. The legislature’s skepticism was supported by Attorney General Raul Labrador, who similarly concluded that the scheme was illegal according to a legal analysis.
The investigation into the deal struck last spring prompted university officials to shift their focus and work toward a settlement that would satisfy lawmakers.
In the final days of the session, Senate leadership attempted to broker a deal that would change the structure of the proposed purchase of the university to address concerns among some lawmakers that the deal was illegally structured, or could result in tax liability for hundreds of millions of euros. binding. The bill would also have added legislative oversight to the newly acquired university’s operations.
But the deal, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Winder, R-Boise, failed on a 14-19 vote as lawmakers looked with concern at letters from Labrador and Treasurer Julie Ellsworth casting doubt on the deal hours before the vote. called. Green said he was still optimistic that such a bill or resolution could come back in the next session.
Green is investing money in GOP races
As hundreds of thousands of dollars flowed into Republican legislative elections this spring, Green and his wife entered the fray to support more moderate Republican candidates across the state.
Green donated more than $7,500 to candidates, along with a $10,000 donation last fall to New Horizons, a political action committee led by Rep. Megan Blanksma, R-Hammett, who was ousted from her role as House Majority Leader in a fight within her caucus during session, and who lost her re-election bid this month to a more conservative challenger. Blanksma told the Staatsman who PAC was inactive this year; It hasn’t filed any expenditures since last year, according to state records.
Green gave up to $1,000 donations to Lori Bishop, Reps. Lori McCann and Britt Raybould, Winder and former Rep. Jim Woodward. He gave more than $750 to Geoff Schroeder; more than $500 each to Jeff Agenbroad and Take Back Idaho PAC, a group of establishment Republicans who have banded together to combat “extremism” in Idaho politics; and donations of $250 or more to Scott Syme and Reps. Matt Bundy, Mark Sauter and Julie Yamamoto.
Green’s wife, Gabriella Green, gave $25,000 to a PAC called Idaho Deserves Better, which campaigned against Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Viola, a far-right state senator who represents Latah County. Northern Idaho County includes Moscow, where the land-grant university is located.
Of the candidates Green and his wife supported, eight of 12 lost, and Foreman won his re-election bid.
Green and his wife have “the same rights as any other citizen,” Walker told the Statesman in an email.
“Any political contributions by Scott or Gabriella Green are self-funded and not tied to university dollars,” Walker said.
There is backlash over donations to the Idaho Freedom Foundation, a powerful player in Republican politics.
The group’s lobbyist, Fred Birnbaum, wrote a column criticizing Green’s activities before this month’s election. Although he did not mention the Phoenix purchase, Birnbaum said Green’s efforts were to “defeat conservative legislative candidates and promote liberal candidates” who support funding for the state’s public universities and what he calls “woke it out.” of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
IFF candidates had a largely favorable election night this month. The primaries will send another six far-right lawmakers to the legislature, which could make the potential for a deal next year even more difficult. The group has broadly opposed publicly funded education in the state, including opposing efforts in local school districts to pay for the renovation of dilapidated classrooms.
Would lawmakers want to engage in further negotiations?
Winder, perhaps the most outspoken proponent of the deal in the Senate, lost his primary bid in major unrest after 16 years in the Senate. His death was part of a trend that has prompted some more moderate lawmakers to fold.
Senate Majority Leader Kelly Anthon, R-Burley, told the Statesman by text message that he thought the effects of the primary on the deal were unclear.
“These types of complex agreements require a lot of due diligence,” he says. “So to the extent that the Legislature wants to continue evaluating the proposal, an extension seems logical.”
Lawmakers will select new leaders after the November elections.
It could be even harder for such a proposal to pass the House of Representatives, where hardline conservatives won nearly a half-dozen seats from more moderate incumbents. House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, did not respond to a request for comment.
A spokesman for Gov. Brad Little, who has supported the deal, did not respond to a request for comment. The State Board of Education, which is largely appointed by Little, “has not yet had an opportunity to meet and discuss the latest developments,” spokesman Mike Keckler told the Statesman by email.
“It’s going to be much harder for the University of Idaho to get something from the House of Representatives and the Senate and get the governor to sign it based on the outcome of the election,” Crane said.
Crane has been skeptical for months about the benefits such a deal would bring to the state, and wary of the risks if taxpayers could be held liable if the council defaults on its bonds.
In addition to Ellsworth’s concerns, Crane’s father, Ron Crane, who served as Idaho’s treasurer for nearly two decades, also worries that taxpayers could be held liable for delinquent payments.
Brent Crane told the Statesman he is willing to meet with university officials but will need to be convinced the deal is in the state’s best interest moving forward.
“They still want to make it happen, and sometimes you have to accept the reality, and I don’t know if they’re there yet,” he said.
Reporter Kevin Fixler contributed.
