Open records act

Open records are public records available to anybody interested in viewing them. The access to any open record is granted under the conditions of the open records act called Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

The open records act was created in 1966 and sets regulations about public record information collection and solicitation. It applies exclusively to government agencies. An amendment of the open records act from 1996 called The Electronic Freedom of Information Act obliged government agencies to make certain public records available electronically. Thanks to this amendment today most of the public records you want to find are available online.

Open records request procedures

Anyone interested in obtaining open public records can make open records request at the government agency maintaining the type of records the person needs. For example if you are looking for court dockets, you will need to visit the court clerk's department and make an open records request there. There are similar procedures for obtaining open public records from the National Archive, local departments of motor vehicles, police departments, state correction facilities (prisons) and so on.

Those who choose to search for records online through a third party public record provider do not need to make open records request as many open public records can be obtained directly. If you choose to search for records online, you will only need the name of the person whose records you want to find. You can use the name with the search facilities of the public records website and you will be able to view the records in a few seconds.