A. All records of the department relating to the administration and enforcement of the Motor Vehicle Code [66-1-1 NMSA 1978] and any other law relating to motor vehicles, the administration and enforcement of which is charged to the department, other than those declared by law to be confidential for the use of the department, shall be open to public inspection during office hours.

B. Disposition of obsolete records of the department relating to the administration and enforcement of the Motor Vehicle Code and any other law relating to motor vehicles, the administration and enforcement of which is charged to the department, shall be made in accordance with the provisions of the Public Records Act [Chapter 14, Article 3 NMSA 1978].

C. The department may copy or abstract records of the department relating to the administration and enforcement of the Motor Vehicle Code and any other law relating to motor vehicles, the administration and enforcement of which is charged to the department, to the extent permitted by law. The copies or abstracts may be made in paper, electronic, microfilm, optical or other formats. Duly certified copies of official records shall be deemed valid and given the same weight and consideration as original records.

D. Any person may purchase copies, printouts or abstracts of records of the department described in Subsection A of this section. The copies, printouts or abstracts may be made in paper, electronic, microfilm, optical or other formats. The department may make a reasonable charge for the furnishing of copies, printouts or abstracts and for certifying any such copy.

History: 1953 Comp., § 64-2-7, enacted by Laws 1978, ch. 35, § 11; 1981, ch. 361, § 3; 1985, ch. 26, § 1; 1991, ch. 160, § 7; 1995, ch. 135, § 3; 1999, ch. 49, § 2.

Cross references. — For records of traffic cases, see 66-8-135 NMSA 1978.

For electronic authentication and substitution for signature, see 14-3-15.2 NMSA 1978.

The 1999 amendment, effective July 1, 1999, in Subsection D added "and for certifying any such copy" to the end of the last sentence, deleted the former last sentence, which read "All fees so collected shall be paid to the state treasurer and distributed in accordance with Section 66-6-23 NMSA 1978", and made minor stylistic changes.

The 1995 amendment, effective June 16, 1995, in Subsection C, inserted "to the extent permitted by law" at the end of the first sentence, added the second sentence, and deleted "whether microfilm or computers" following "records" in the third sentence; and added the second sentence in Subsection D.

The 1991 amendment, effective July 1, 1991, substituted "department" for "division" in the catchline and throughout the section; inserted "relating to the administration and enforcement of the Motor Vehicle Code and any other law relating to motor vehicles the administration and enforcement of which is charged to the department" in Subsections A, B and C; deleted "division" following "official" in the second sentence in Subsection C; and, in Subsection D, rewrote the first sentence, which read "Any person may purchase copies or abstracts of records of the division that are open to public inspection", and deleted "as determined by the director" following "charged" in the second sentence.

General public has right to examine files of the department which are public records. 1968 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 68-90.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — Right to inspect motor vehicle records, 84 A.L.R.2d 1261.