HARRISBURG - Several new state laws are needed to make operations at Pennsylvania State University more accountable to the public in the wake of a child sex abuse scandal, state Auditor General Jack Wagner said Thursday.
Wagner's recommendations include diluting the power of the university's president, setting new meeting rules for the university's board of trustees and bringing Penn State under the state Right-to-Know law.
He said these recommendations - which need to be approved by state lawmakers - have been developed since the sex abuse scandal first became public last year. That scandal eventually led to the conviction of former football coach Jerry Sandusky on 45 counts of child sexual abuse.
"Too much power is vested in the (university) CEO and president," Wagner said.
He recommends stripping the university president of his seat on the 32-member board of trustees and control over setting the board's meeting agenda.
The auditor general called for a change to the board's meeting rules, saying that a majority of members should be present for business to be conducted. The current quorum rule of 13 members means a motion can be approved with as few as seven votes, he said.
Having the governor be a non-voting board member instead of a voting member can help avoid potential conflicts of interest, Wagner also said. The potential for that is ripe since it's very conceivable that any of several statewide elected officials can be elected governor in the future, he said.
Gov. Tom Corbett has said he's weighing proposals to change the makeup of the trustee board.
Wagner also urged applying the Right-to-Know law to Penn State and three other state-related universities. He said exceptions could be made for information regarding proprietary research, donations and contributions and intellectual property rights.
But Wagner emphasized the public deserves access to information about employee salaries, retirement packages, contracts, season football tickets and decisions on emeritus status.
Wagner's office plans to issue a full report on Penn State oversight in late September. He urged lawmakers to wait on taking up legislation until the report is finished. Lawmakers will be in session only several weeks this fall to wrap up business before the Nov. 6 General Election.
Wagner emphasized that Penn State's status as a public university is due to the direct state aid it receives as well as allocations for capital projects and taxpayer contributions to its employee pensions.
"As long as you are receiving any taxpayer money, you need to be accountable to the public," Wagner said.