Kansas University should be required to disclose all of its athletic director’s compensation records because it’s in the public interest, an attorney representing the Journal-World argued Friday in court.
Gerald Cooley, who represents the newspaper and 6News, sought to counter arguments by the university and KU Athletic Corp. that the state’s open records law exempts disclosure of most of Athletic Director Lew Perkins’ financial compensation.
Cooley said the records law was designed to foster open government.
“That means no hidden records, no secret meetings,” he said.
The lawsuit was filed in January by The World Company, which operates the Journal-World and 6News. The Associated Press and Kansas Press Assn. later joined the litigation.
“There is no way to defend against the idea that they do not want to disclose how the public’s money is being spent,” Cooley said. “What collusive skullduggery could be imagined if the public has no access to that contract?”
Douglas County District Judge Jack Murphy said he would issue an order quickly on whether the records must be shared with the public.
The university has released Perkins’ annual base salary, $420,000, and disclosed an agreement guaranteeing him $100,000 in multimedia payments, as well as other perks. But it has refused to release copies of his employment agreement or a separate agreement for potential supplemental compensation.
Though not previously disclosed, a university attorney said in court Friday the arrangement does not include annuities, which have been a part of other athletic department compensation deals.
The Kansas Open Records Act is the state law requiring most documents created by public agencies, and agencies spending public funds, to be available to the public. It is intended to ensure the public’s business is done in public.
In arguments before Murphy, the university’s attorneys said the Legislature clearly intended to protect the privacy of public employees when it enacted an exception to the Open Records Act allowing agencies to refuse to release personnel records, performance ratings or other “individually identifiable records” about employees.
“Plain English controls,” attorney Wyatt Wright said, arguing the exception was clear.
And attorney Sara Trower told Murphy: “If the language is plain on its face, then you, your honor, are supposed to give its plain and ordinary meaning.”
Mike Merriam, the Topeka attorney representing the AP and the press association, disputed those arguments.
“Are we to believe the Legislature wanted contracts that bind a public agency to be secret?” he asked the judge. “I don’t think so.”
The university’s attorneys also told Murphy that forcing the university to disclose such information would be overstepping judicial bounds.
Asked after the hearing what harm they saw in releasing the records, Trower and Wright declined to comment.
The World Company also sought copies of checks paid to Perkins from the time he was approached about the athletic director’s job, a list of payments due him and the sources of all payments due him. Some of those records have been released.
“The university went beyond what would be required to be disclosed,” Trower said, noting that information besides Perkins’ salary was released.
Perkins was hired in June 2003 after serving as athletic director at the University of Connecticut. The Journal-World began seeking information on his compensation late last year. It filed the lawsuit only after being rebuffed in several earlier attempts to get the information.
“This certainly is not a situation of The World Company versus the university; our company has a long history of supporting KU,” said Ralph Gage, chief operating officer of The World Company. “It’s also not a situation of the AP or the Kansas Press Association picking on Mr. Perkins.
“The issue is that the citizens of the state have the right to know how the employees of the state are being compensated — and by whom, and under what circumstances or for what reasons. It’s pretty simple, and we believe the court will agree.”