Inspection of Public Records Act

Notice of Right to Inspect Public Records

By law, under the Inspection of Public Records Act, every person has the right to inspect public records of the New Mexico State Personnel Office unless the records are protected by law. Compliance with requests to inspect public records is an integral part of the routine duties of the officers and employees of the State Personnel Office.

Please review the comprehensive Inspection of Public Records Compliance Guide publication if you have any questions regarding IPRA requirements or its application.

Fees: The Act allows agencies to charge a reasonable fee for copies of public records. The State Personnel Office charges a fee of $0.25 per side of copying and charges the actual cost for a CD or jump drive for electronic copies that cannot be emailed. For copies saved to a CD or jump drive, the State Personnel Office may charge the cost of the employee’s time required to download the records. For example, if the employee is paid twenty dollars ($20.00) per hour and the scanning takes thirty (30) minutes, the cost of the time will be ten dollars ($10.00). The State Personnel Office will mail documents if the requester provides the agency with: (1) advance payment for the actual costs required for delivery or adequate prepaid postage and (2) the costs associated with copying or scanning the request. The State Personnel Office charges a fee of $0.05 per page for transmitting electronic copies of public records totaling more than 2,000 pages.

A person desiring to inspect public records may submit a request to the IPRA Records Custodian orally or in writing. However, the procedures and penalties prescribed by the Act apply only to written requests. A written request must contain the name, email address, and telephone number of the person making the request. For convenience, the State Personnel Office has an Inspection of Public Records Request Form for requests.

The request must describe the records sought in sufficient detail to enable the IPRA Records Custodian to identify and locate the requested records. Requests for reasons or justification on why certain actions were taken by the State Personnel Office are not proper requests under this law.

If you are seeking an employee’s personnel information who does not work for State Personnel Office, please submit your request directly to the employee’s employer. The State Personnel Office does not maintain every State employee’s personnel file.

The records custodian must permit inspection immediately or as soon as practicable, but no later than 15 calendar days after the records custodian receives the inspection request. If inspection is not permitted within three business days, the person making the request will receive a written response explaining when the records will be available for inspection or when the public body will respond to the request.

If any of the records sought are not available for public inspection, the person making the request is entitled to a written response from the records custodian explaining the reasons inspection has been denied. The written denial shall be delivered or mailed within 15 calendar days after the records custodian receives the request for inspection.