A libertarian think tank says Santa Fe Public Schools should be more forthcoming — electronically — in response to a public-records request for district payroll and vendor information.

But the school district says it's following the law and is ready to provide hard copies of the documents.

The Rio Grande Foundation requested the information in mid-June but was told that copies of the 4,000 pages of records would cost more than $1,200.

Instead of paying that much, the group sought the information electronically, a form the organization said was used to provide data requested in February of this year. But district officials said that information was mistakenly provided to the group by e-mail.

"While I understand that you may have obtained copies last year directly from an employee in electronic format and without charge that transaction was by mistake and was not done pursuant to the district's policy or practice," records custodian LeeAnn Archuleta wrote to the foundation.

Rio Grande Foundation director Paul Gessing said he's "shocked" by the move.

"In February of this year the district provided information to us electronically and for free. This is information on how the school district — a government entity that is supposed to serve us — is spending taxpayer money. What are the Santa Fe school district bureaucrats trying to hide?" he said in a statement.

Superintendent Bobbie Gutierrez said there's nothing to hide and the district is willing to comply with the state public-records law, which outlines how requesters can inspect or copy records. She said the information "certainly" is public, but a school district attorney advised that the information not be sent electronically. The group can pick up or inspect the records, she said.

"It's an incredible amount of staff time," Gutierrez said of the work that would be required to scan and send so many documents. "When you start talking about that many pages, it's incredibly difficult."

Schools attorney Tony F. Ortiz said the law doesn't require the district to provide the information electronically.

"I think it's clear the district not only met but exceeded the law," he said.

Apart from the staff time needed to make electronic copies, Ortiz said there also are issues with people bringing in their own media, such as portable computer hard drives, and connecting them to school computers to transfer the data.

The issue of electronic records has come up with school and state agencies in the past, and not all of them handle requests for electronic information the same way.

Some state agencies, for example, willingly provide scans of documents requested by reporters, while others require an office visit to review documents. Some say the state's Inspection of Public Records Act is outdated and should be revamped to address electronic records.

Sarah Welsh, head of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government, said the district ought to copy the information electronically.

"The statute is pretty clear. It's a record, it exists, they are holding it. A requester is entitled to a copy and that doesn't change because the copy is electronic," she said.

A national pro-transparency group, the Sunshine Review, recently gave the school district a grade of D and New Mexico schools overall an F for transparency.

Contact Kate Nash at 986-3036 or knash@sfnewmexican.com. Read her blog at www.greenchilechatter.com.