Universities with large endowments are once again coming under the congressional microscope. Unlike in 2007 and 2008, however, this time it’s just the private institutions — apparently the 56 whose endowments were valued in excess of $1 billion as of the 2014 fiscal year — that will face scrutiny over the "tax preferences" afforded those endowments. Two key congressional committees are sending letters to the institutions this week, demanding that they provide at least five years of financial data about their endowment-spending policies, the fees they pay to their money managers, and the share of endowment going toward student aid. The Chronicle obtained a draft version of the letter. The letter’s questions — 28 in all, some in several parts — also ask about the institutions' "naming rights" policies for donors, policies on conflicts of interest for college officials and trustees involved in investment decisions, and methods of setting compensation for presidents and other highly paid officials.

February 9, 2016 ・ From Chronicle of Higher Education