The Journal-World and 6News are taking the next step in a legal effort to force Kansas University to release public records detailing the salary and benefits paid to athletic director Lew Perkins.

The newspaper and television station said Friday they would continue with litigation to force the university and KU Athletic Corp. to release the information, which is being closeted in violation of Kansas law.

In documents filed Friday in Douglas County District Court, KU denied the records were public documents as defined by the Kansas Open Records Act. The act is the state law intended to ensure public bodies and those spending public funds conduct their business in public.

The university based its denial on a 1993 attorney general’s opinion that has never been tested in a court of law. The opinion said an employment contract was an “individually identifiable” employment record not subject to the state’s open-records law.

The newspaper and television station say an employment contract is not such a record, which may be excluded from disclosure under state law.

“We’re going to litigate the real meaning of the open records act as it pertains to personnel records,” said Gerald Cooley, the newspaper’s attorney. “We believe that would apply to things like employee evaluations, disciplinary actions, Social Security numbers, home phone numbers and those kinds of things, but in no way does it suggest that a contract would not be disclosable.”

The university and athletic corporation were responding to a lawsuit filed in January. Since late December, the Journal-World and 6News have asked the university to make public a variety of documents — including an employment contract — that would put to rest speculation about the extent of compensation to Perkins, who has been athletic director since July. Before the suit was filed, the requests were made informally, then formally both by the newspaper and its attorney.

The university earlier disclosed Perkins received an annual base salary of $400,000 and fringe benefits including two automobiles, family memberships to two country clubs and two season tickets to men’s basketball games.

It also said “contingent supplemental compensation is potentially available” under his contract. That supplemental income has been said to boost Perkins’ annual compensation to about $1 million.

Faculty members and others from the university community have told the Journal-World the question must be addressed, as estimates of Perkins’ compensation were causing concern.

Because of the wide interest in matters relating to the costs of athletics and continuing state and university budget shortfalls, such disclosures are important and will continue to be sought by the Journal-World and 6News, its managers said.