Colorado Senate Approves Electronic Records

DENVER (AP) - Colorado's Senate wants government agencies to join the computer age when it comes to public records.

The Senate gave preliminary approval Tuesday night to a bill directing government agencies to deliver requested public records in electronic formats that can be read by computer. The bill aims to mae the Colorado Open Records Act more user-friendly to citizens who want to analyze information.

The bill is inspired by an investigation into gender pay equity at Colorado State University by The Coloradoan. CSU refused to provide the newspaper a computerized database of salaries, forcing journalists to create their own after inspecting nearly 5,000 employee salaries the university offered on paper.

A similar bill died last year amid concerns about so-called metadata that could divulge personal information, even once that information is redacted.

- By JAMES ANDERSON, AP Writer

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