A college student received a gargantuan $84,000 fee for access to any information related to an ongoing investigation at his school.
The student had requested a series of documents from Grand Valley State University in Michigan under the Freedom of Information Act.
These documents were related to an ongoing investigation within the school after it filed two complaints against a university administrator.
He hoped the documentation he received under the freedom of information request could bolster his case. But the school said it would cost $84,000 just to access the information.
The student’s mother, Carrie Uthe, said, “They gave us documentation to prove that breakdown, but it still didn’t make sense.”
Grand Valley State University issued a statement to WZZM who defended the exorbitant cost of the service.
“Grand Valley used its normal process to calculate the fee for this application,” a spokesperson said.
‘The request is very broad and would involve over 59,000 emails over a specific period.
“Compliance with the request would require a qualified employee to review each individual email and each attachment for and redact personal and protected information.”
The school said it would cost $84,000 just to access the information.
The student had requested a series of documents from Grand Valley State University in Michigan under the Freedom of Information Act.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, any member of the public can request information from federal agencies.
There is no cost to apply, but sometimes there may be costs associated with finding the necessary documents.
The student’s mother, Carrie Uthe, said, “They gave us documentation to prove that breakdown, but it still didn’t make sense.”
“Our son is just trying to get his voice heard and get the right people taken care of for his behaviors that are bad decisions they’ve made.”
