University says Rolla student newspaper can sue

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- The University of Missouri system has rejected a demand from a student newspaper in Rolla to restore budget cuts to the newspaper.

Last week, the Missouri Miner staff at the Rolla campus said it would sue the university system over $12,500 in budget cuts, which the paper claimed were in retaliation for articles critical of the school.

The paper set a deadline of 5 p.m. Monday for the cuts to be restored.

On Tuesday, Bunky Wright, general counsel for the university system, said the students did not appear to have any proof for their claims.

"If you have any facts or documentation that supports your contentions to the contrary, we would be happy to review that information," Wright wrote in a two-page letter.

He wrote that in the absence of such facts, "we respectfully decline to meet the demands expressed in your memorandum" of Feb. 12.

The Miner received $39,500 for the 2006-07 school year but will receive $27,000 in student fees next year. About $10,000 of the cuts will be in pay to Miner staff.

Christopher Stryker, editor in chief of the Miner, said the university's response was inadequate.

"There are some half-truths, I'd say, and some outright questionable claims," he said. "That's just not right."

Wright said in his letter that more than 40 percent of the 19 student organizations that submitted budget requests will get less money next school year than they did this school year. He noted that one of those organizations is the UMR Student Council, which is the group that makes the final student recommendation on how student activity fees should be distributed.

The Miner staff is working with the Student Press Law Center, an Arlington, Va.-based agency, to decide what legal actions are available.

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Information from: Columbia Daily Tribune, http://www.columbiatribune.com