Albuquerque Journal

N.M. Tech Caught Between Public Records, Privacy Laws (Op-Ed)
By John Meason, New Mexico Tech

New Mexico Tech and its research division Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center have come under scrutiny in recent weeks for our refusal to accommodate a blanket request for documents about a proposed “drop zone” on university property.
       
A few critical issues went missing in the debate. Most significantly, we have been wrongly accused of safeguarding the environmental assessment and other documents that we have shared with the public many months ago.
       
In fact, the environmental assessment was posted on our Web site. The working agreement that defined the proposed activity at the drop zone was also made public.
       
The crux of the matter is that our neighbors who oppose the drop zone requested an undefined amount of paperwork using vague and nebulous wording. The request for “public records” included “all communications,” which includes e-mails, memos and letters, between the university and numerous federal, state and local agencies and officials.
       
We, as a research division, a university and a state institution, felt that the request fell squarely in the gray area between what obviously qualifies as “public record” and other documents that might be considered private, personal or confidential.
       
Federal privacy laws, such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPPA, and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, have created challenges for public institutions and are still being interpreted. These laws have implications that are not fully understood and will continue to be tested in federal courts around the country.
      
 In short, public agencies like New Mexico Tech face a challenge to walk a tightrope between serving the public good and protecting the privacy of our students, faculty and staff members.
      
 In this case, we felt that the most prudent course would be to let a judge define “public records.” District Judge Kevin Sweazea made his ruling and we will abide by his decision.
       
The university was not trying to circumvent the Inspection of Public Records Act, nor were we trying to sidestep our obligation to our main constituents — New Mexico taxpayers. We have already complied with the judge's order and have released the documents that Judge Sweazea instructed us to release.
       
Our main intention was to avoid the potential long-term and damaging lawsuits that could arise from releasing documents that are not public. We hope taxpayers realize that paying a small fee to have a judge offer us instruction is much cheaper than being sued by individuals for releasing private information.
       
Dr. John Meason is the director of Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center at New Mexico Tech in Socorro.