The head of a group lobbying the Nova Scotia government to be more open and accountable says charging $740 for a simple request for information is "over the top."

Darce Fardy, president of the Right to Know Coalition of Nova Scotia, said the bill sent to CBC News in response to an information request is typical.

"Well, it's too typical. There's too many people seeing those kinds of bills coming across when they want to use the Freedom of Information [and Protection of Privacy] Act, and it's discouraging people from using it," he said Monday.

CBC News has requested to see documents related to renovations at Government House — the Lt.-Gov's official residence on Barrington Street in Halifax.

The Transportation Department said it would take three full workdays to find and photocopy the 400 pages requested.

Fardy, the former review officer for Nova Scotia's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, said it's hard to imagine it would take that long to process communications between four bureaucrats.

But, he said, he doesn't think it's a deliberate attempt to price the information out of reach.

"I don't think so. I think it's just dumb.…They say that's to prevent too many people from coming in with unreasonable requests," Fardy said.

"Not enough people are using the act anyway. You can't get anybody interested in it. They're all discouraged either by costs or by waiting times — those who want to use it — and this, this is just unhelpful."

Given the province's freedom of Information law is more than a dozen years old, Fardy said, bureaucrats should be better at storing and retrieving documents.

The NDP government should make information requests more affordable and more immediate, he said, noting that the party frequently sought information under the act while it was in opposition.

Last month, CBC News learned that Nova Scotia taxpayers were shelling out another $15,000 to re-do a bathroom in the newly renovated Government House for the Queen — in case she decides to stay there during a visit to the province in June.

The official residence of Lt.-Gov. Mayann Francis reopened in December after a $6-million renovation job.