Daily Lobo new mexico
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
dailylobo.com
Monday, June 24, 2019 | Vo l u m e 1 2 3 | I s s u e 6 9
UNM IPRA PROJECT
UNM redacts response letters By Danielle Prokop @ProkopDani The University of New Mexico may have violated transparency laws with a near-total redaction of three letters between a Records Custodian and an unknown requester(s) or requestors, according to transparency advocates. The records were dated between November and December 2018 and the bulk or in some cases the entirety of the information being sought from the University — including the requestor’s name — was redacted. All the documents were requested by the Daily Lobo though the Inspection of Public Records Act. Last week, the University was publicly criticized by the Office of the Attorney General for failure to adhere to the state’s Inspection of Public Records Act by not releasing records to the Albuquerque Journal. The New Mexico Foundation for Open Government Executive Director, Melanie Majors said she had concerns about the amount of redactions. “I cannot imagine why they would black out the request," Majors said. “There’s nothing that when you file a request for IPRA that says your request is confidential, especially at a public institution. Long story short, I think this is a violation of the Inspection of Public Records Act,” Majors said. UNM spokeswoman Cinnamon Blair referred the Daily Lobo to the UNM Custodian of Public Records’ response letter to answer why the records were redacted. Blair said the office would provide further comment on Monday. “We’ll look to provide clarification
to the response you’ve received,” Blair told the Daily Lobo on Sunday. The response letter to the Daily Lobo cited health information, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and protected personal identifier information as the reasons for the redactions. The letter did not mention specific redactions on documents. Majors said while the information in the actual records request may be protected, she said she is skeptical the letter between the custodian and requester is protected. “All the things they’re permitted to redact in messages are personal identifiers, it’s like the date of birth except for the year (and) a whole social security number,” Majors said. “I don’t know why they think they can redact a request.” The Daily Lobo asked the University for all the letters responding to records requests for 2018. The University provided documents for 839 letters. Most letters were displayed in full with blacked-out email addresses, physical addresses, names of requestors, and other names within the request redacted. Redactions across the records request were inconsistent, even in versions of the same document. Email addresses that were redacted previously were left unredacted in later other documents. Letters relating to three records numbered 18-743,18-760 and 18762 were redacted almost entirely. Two others, 18-744 and 18-761 had significant portions redacted, including the requestor's name. All the records were filed on two days, Nov. 4, 2018 and Nov. 12, 2018. 18-743 was nearly redacted in its entirety, the only part of the response letter visible was a denial.
Graphic by Anna C. Evanitz / @ACEvanitz / @DailyLobo
“The appropriate UNM departments have confirmed that the Office of University Counsel has already provided you with copies of your grievances. This request is considered fulfilled and will be closed,” was written in the response. The letter was dated Nov. 30, 2018 and was signed by Christy Armijo, who at publication time was not listed in the UNM directory. A spokesperson told the Daily Lobo they “believe she is no longer with UNM.” 18-760 was filed on Nov. 12,
2018. The final response letter was dated on Nov. 27. The excerpt of the request that is unredacted reads: “This is BOTH a request under the Freedom of Information ACT and a Grievance-Complaint. I request that a copy of the following documents and media [or documents containing the following information] be provided to me:” Three sections are redacted and a fourth reads: “Marron Lee and All the Boards of Regents witnessed my complaint. Thus per UNMH guidelines, a report should have been available to me within 7 days.
Please provide the report.” The response part of the letter was unredacted. The first item was said to be maintained at a URL: https://hospitals.health.unm.edu/ intranet7/apps/doc_management/ index.cfm?project_id=1 which includes lists of guidelines and procedures for UNM Hospitals. The second and fifth items were said not to seek any public records. The third and forth items were rejected because there were no responsive documents.
see
IPRA page 3
Senior Games boosts economy UNM student killed in double homicide By Alyssa Martinez @amart4447
The biennial National Senior Games have brought visitors from all 50 states to the Land of Enchantment for two weeks of competition and community building. This year’s games are the largest in history, with 13,712 registered athletes spanning across 20 sporting events.The games have brought around 25,000 visitors to the city and local restaurants are feeding the demand. According to Tania Armenta, CEO and director of Visit Albuquerque, the games are projected to bring in at least $17 million in direct spending, and over $30 million in economic impact. One of the restaurants impacted
is Frontier, a staple restaurant in Albuquerque best known for their breakfast dishes, green and red chile, flour tortillas and sweet rolls. Dorothy Rainosek, co-owner of the landmark restaurant, seems delighted to be giving visitors a taste of what the city has to offer. “They’re gung-ho to try New Mexican food,” Rainosek said. “We have people from back east, and they don’t even know of green chile there. I say, ‘if you’re a little apprehensive about trying it, put it on the side,’ but most of them are gangbusters. They are enjoying it a lot.” Another restaurant impacted by the games is the Range Café. Conveniently located between multiple hotels, the Range Café has become a lunch and dinner hotspot for traveling athletes. Erica Duran, the general manager
there, is pleasantly surprised by the boost in business. “We did expect a little bit of customers, but we didn’t expect as many as we got, so we’re very happy,” Duran said. “Father’s Day weekend is always a busy weekend, but we noticed that from Father’s Day last year to this year, our sales increased by $3,000. Even last night, my manager was supposed to leave at 6 p.m., but she didn’t leave until 8 p.m. because we were slammed.” Even chain establishments are feeling the energy that the athletes have sent through the city. Much like the Frontier and the Range Café, the Starbucks across from the University of New Mexico did not know what to expect from the event.
see
Games page 2
By Makayla Grijalva @MakaylaEliboria “She is probably one of the most genuine people I’ve ever met.” UNM Student Shanta Hanish was remembered by her friend Donald Roberts just a couple days after both her and her mother Laura Hanish were discovered by Albuquerque detectives stabbed to death in their home on Friday, June 21. “I’m pretty shocked, honestly. The last time I saw her was on campus… like a quick little catch-up kind of thing — nothing too long.” Roberts said. “But that was the last time I saw her and I didn’t really think much of it.” An arrest warrant was issued on Saturday for Jesus Cartagena, 20, for
see
Homicide page 5
Courtesy photo
Shanta Hanish, a 19-year-old University of New Mexico student, along with her mother Laura were murdered in their home on June 21. Photo courtesy of the family via Facebook.
Inside this Issue: GARCIA & GRIJALVA: Transparency is crucial for a healthy university
GRIJALVA: UNM places top five in rocket competition