TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — University of Kansas officials say using $327 million in out of state bonds to finance construction projects allows them to meet crucial campus needs in a cost-effective way.

Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little, other university officials and state Board of Regents members defended the school’s so-called central district development project and its financing Tuesday during a House Appropriations Committee hearing.

The university formed a nonprofit corporation which then had Wisconsin’s Public Finance Authority issue the bonds last month without legislative approval.

Special university counsel Jeff Gans said the university needed to move quickly to keep its borrowing costs low. Also, officials said the project includes a new student dormitory that would open in fall 2017 and prevent a housing shortage.

The project also includes a new science building to replace outdated labs.