State Auditor Rob Sand is raising questions about changes in the state contract with Odyssey, the company managing taxpayer funded Education Savings Accounts for private school students in Iowa. Sand says the company will be paid double what was in the original contract.
Sand, the only Democrat serving in statewide office, says state officials who renegotiated the contract added fees, like a five-cent payment for every transaction and 25 cents for every 100 dollars’ worth of expenses Odyssey manages.
A spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Education says the agency decided to cover the transaction fees rather than having those costs deducted from the students’ accounts. The state-funded ESA may be used to cover tuition and other private school expenses. Sand says a conservative estimate indicates the state will send an additional $2.3 Million to Odyssey by 2027. The state deposited nearly $130 Million into Education Savings Accounts for low-income private school students last year and could spend over $230 Million on the program this fall if all eligible applicants enroll in a private school.
