By Matt Sepic, KWMU
St. Louis – The transit agency Metro said it will give State Auditor Susan Montee full access to the documents she wants, but not for another five months.
Former Auditor Claire McCaskill began investigating Metro in 2005, after the agency reported $126 million in cost overruns with the MetroLink extension project.
On Wednesday, Montee told KWMU she plans to sue the agency because it is refusing to hand over the necessary documents.
Metro officials declined to speak on tape. But in a statement Thursday, the agency said releasing those documents would jeopardize a lawsuit against the four companies hired to design and build the rail line.
Metro accuses the Cross County Collaborative of fraud, and the agency says it hopes to recover the cost overrun.
A trial in that case is set to begin in late August, and Metro said it will not make its internal documents public until then.
The agency also says it is surprised and disappointed by Montee's comments.