"Therefore, we urge you to re consider ... redaction decisions made by staff."

That line comes from a letter written New Years eve, 2009.

It was written by then NM FOG Executive Director Sarah Welsh on behalf of FOG in a letter to the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission.  She was concerned that records the FOG had requested, results of a PRC employee ethics survey, had been redacted beyond usefulness.

She was expressing the position of the FOG that, when they asked for the results of a PRC employee ethics survey, the commission had redacted the records improperly.

We believe that for several surveys, the redaction was improper and/or overzealous and would not stand up under a court review.

Five years later, politicians and public servants still self-redact the record of their own public service.  Five years later, there is still no penalty for politicians and public servants who zealously over-redact their records.

Every time a pol or public servant redacts their own record, they create the appearance of a conflict of interests and the appearance of impropriety.

I can't imagine why people writing public records law would even consider self-redaction. 

I can't imagine why it is still allowed.




photo Mark Bralley