PACER is the federal court document system. It charges 10 cents per page to access public court records, which are by definition... public. It generates roughly $140 million per year in fees. It costs an estimated $10-20 million per year to operate. Where does the rest go?
The fix is simple: use federal appropriations and make PACER free to the public. Journalists, researchers, lawyers, and citizens who want to keep track of federal court happenings or understand how the federal court system works shouldn't have to pay per page to read public documents.
Court records are public records. They should be publicly accessible. This is also an opportunity to ask why it costs $20 million a year to run a document website.