What to ask for and how to identify it

The most frustrating part of Public Records research is when you have someone tell you that they don't understand what you're asking for. They don't even know what records they keep. I found one really helpful resource to help narrow down the specifics of my requests, and to learn what categories of documents different departments keep. Paper Trails: A Guide to Public Records in California by Stephen Levine and Barbara T. Newcombe provides incredible insight into what documents each department of each agency keeps. This is very helpful when you "think" one department has the record and in fact it doesn't. For example if you wanted to know what records the Parks and Recreation department of your county keeps you would look through the index, it tells you to goto C295 through C306. You find different headings for Dock, Harbor, Marina Permit Files; Incident and Accident Reports; Lease Files; Lifeguard Administration Files; Pesticide Spraying Files.

A detailed description of C303: Permits and Reservations Files, Use Permit Files, Facility Use Permits. Records of requests for permission to use a facility. Contents: name of organization, fees, site requested, date, time, correspondence, insurance policies, bond information, registration logs, description of activities, anticipated attendance, receipts, billing. (Very insightful stuff if you ask me). I use this book often.