Colleges’ Tax-Relief Quest Runs Into Limited Congress Playbook (1)

U.S. universities are seeking targeted tax relief from Congress after sending students home and wrapping up the spring semester via webcam.

Their asks range from advance refunding of tax-exempt bonds to the suspension of levy on the investment returns of large endowments of private colleges. The need for such relief is mounting as the pandemic has slowed donations, shuttered campuses, and pushed the return of college sports far into the future. Colleges such as George Washington University are anticipating revenue shortfalls in the hundreds of millions, while the University of of Michigan said its gap could be to as ...