NM Takes Another Step Into 21st Century

Heath Haussamen

NMPolitics - A new law requires government agencies to hand over public records in an electronic form if they exist in that form. It’s a small step toward increased transparency and accessibility, but an important step nonetheless. Gov. Susana Martinez signed the bill into law Friday. It was sponsored by Sen. Steve Fischmann, D-Mesilla Park, and Rep. Eleanor Chavez, D-Albuquerque. The new law, which takes effect July 1, was a response to some government agencies not wanting to provide digitized copies of documents. Currently, government agencies only have to make public records available for inspection in their office. That means if you live in Las Cruces or Farmington or Raton and want to inspect records held by a government agency in Santa Fe, and that agency wants to make it more difficult for you to access the documents, it can require that you drive to Santa Fe to view paper copies, rather than making arrangements to provide you with digital copies. Read full story here: News New Mexico

NM Takes Another Step Into 21st Century