Albuquerque Journal

UNM Can Do Math (Editorial)

It doesn't take a Ph.D. to calculate that flouting the state public records law is a losing proposition.
       
The state Taxation and Revenue Department lost a District Court fight and the costs associated with it — including $25,970 to cover the other side's attorney fees — yet chooses to fight on with an appeal. Of course, that money doesn't come out of the officials' pockets. The public has to pay for the agency's refusal to release the public's records, so damn the cost.
       
University of New Mexico regents took the wiser, more responsible path this week, bringing UNM policy into compliance with state law. It may have helped that there are several ex-legislators, including president Jamie Koch, on the board who probably feel as strongly about adherence to laws as some bureaucrats seem to feel about keeping nosy citizens away from their files.
       
Other institutions that haven't already done so should take note of how New Mexico's flagship university changed course; that example should help persuade them to follow in its wake.