The California State Legislature adopted the Public Records Act in 1975. It is designed to give the public access to information in the possession of public agencies. The Act also provides that public records shall be open for inspection during regular office hours of the agency.

Public Records requests may be used to obtain "agency records," which include a wide variety of documents and other materials (including print, photographic, and electronic formats) that were created or obtained by a city agency and are, at the time the request is filed, in the department's possession and control. The Public Records Act excludes certain categories of records from disclosure.

Public records are open to inspection during our regular office hours, 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, except for observed holidays. The Office of the City Clerk is located on the second floor at City Hall, 411 E. Kern Avenue, Tulare, CA  93274. Contact this office by phone at (559) 684-4200 or email.

Requesting Public Records

Requests for public records are not required to be in writing; however, providing a written request is helpful to staff conducting the search for the requested records. It is important to provide a clear and specific description of the information you are requesting. If possible, identify dates, subjects, titles, or authors of the documents requested. For requests for police reports (incident reports), please contact the Police Department directly at (559) 684-4238. For all other requests, use the link provided below.

Submit Request for Public Records

Fees for Records

The City of Tulare charges $0.10 per page when requesting copies of records unless the requested document has an established statutory fee. The cost of CDs are $5 each.

Enterprise System  

Senate Bill 272 was approved on October 11, 2015, which adds a section to the California Public Records Act requiring local agencies to create a catalog of Enterprise Systems by July 1, 2016 with annual updates. An Enterprise System is a software application or computer system that collects, stores, exchanges and analyzes information that the agency uses that is both of the following:  

• A multi-departmental system or a system that contains information collected about the public. 
• A system that serves as an original source of data within an agency. 

An Enterprise System does not include any of the following: 

• Information Technology security systems, including firewalls and other cyber-security systems. 
• Physical access control systems, employee identification management systems, video monitoring and other physical control systems. 
• Infrastructure and mechanical control systems, including those that control or manage street lights, electrical, natural gas or water or sewer functions. 
• Systems related to 911 dispatch and operation or emergency services. 
• Systems that would be restricted from disclosure by Section 6254.19. 
• The specific records that the information technology system collects, stores, exchanges or analyzes.

City of Tulare Enterprise Systems Catalog

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