By Steve Gunn
EAGnews.org

HUNTINGTON, W. Va. – Marshall University President Stephen Kopp wants to keep closer track of school spending and update the budgeting system.

Those are probably worthwhile goals.

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But some skeptics wonder if Kopp is doing things the right way, and they want to see university financial records that will provide information about the school’s budget.

That’s their right under West Virginia’s Freedom of Information law.

But the university has responded to a faculty member’s FOIA request by saying it would cost $54,000 to produce the requested documents, according to an Associated Press report.

The faculty member thinks it’s an outrageous attempt to keep public documents away from the public, and we have to wonder if he’s correct.

Kopp upset the university’s faculty earlier this year when he secretly took all departmental financial accounts and transferred the money to a central account. He later returned the money and explained that we wanted to closely analyze revenues and expenses, according to the news report.

But Kopp said he’s convinced that the university needs an updated budgeting system that involves more centralized management, the news report said. The faculty responded by passing a vote of no confidence in Kopp, and one finance professor, Daniel Brozik, filed a FOIA request for five years  worth of  university financial documents.

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He still has not received the documents, and was stunned when he was asked to pay a $54,000 processing fee, according to the news report.

Brozik reportedly narrowed his document request to three years, which the university indicated would still cost about $32,000. He asked to have the data transferred in electronic form to save printing costs, but was told the information was not available in electronic form.

“It seems as though they’re trying to cover it up and stall as long as they can” Brozik was quoted as saying. “But it’s our right to know.”

It certainly is. Over the past decade or so, the federal government and most states have adopted freedom of information laws to give citizens more access to vital information. People should be able to find out how their tax dollars are spent, and the laws are designed to give them access.

But all too often public institutions or governments use excessive fees to scare people away from gaining public information.

It’s inexcusable and it shouldn’t be allowed.

If the university can prove that it will actually cost what it wanted to charge Brozik for the documents, so be it. If that’s not the case, the school should lower the cost to something reasonable and provide the requested information as quickly as possible.

The state of West Virginia should follow up and make sure there are no more unnecessary delays. The public wants information, and the public is tired of waiting.