About — The Public Record

What This Publication Does

The Public Record publishes data-driven analysis of government documents obtained through the California Public Records Act (CPRA, Government Code § 6250 et seq.). Every article on this site is grounded in actual agency responses to public records requests — not anonymous tips, secondhand accounts, or speculation.

When we report that a city employee earned $730,000 in a single year, or that a university denied a request for bondholder records, it's because the agency told us so in writing. The documents are real. The numbers are the government's own.

"I spent over 20 years on the inside of these agencies. I know what gets prioritized, what gets delayed, and where things fall through the cracks."

About the Author

C.W. Young spent more than 20 years working inside California public agencies — not as an observer, but as someone who understood how decisions were made, how records were kept, and how public records requests were handled from the receiving end.

Santa Clara Valley Water District — one of the largest water agencies in California, managing flood protection, groundwater, and water supply for 2 million residents

City of San Jose — the tenth-largest city in the United States, with a budget exceeding $5 billion and thousands of employees

City of Sunnyvale — a major Silicon Valley municipality with one of the most sophisticated public records programs in the state

That experience is the foundation of this publication. Having seen how agencies handle, prioritize, and sometimes deflect records requests from the inside, C.W. Young now uses the public records process as a reporting tool — not just a formality.

How We Work

Requests are filed using PRA Tracker, a purpose-built platform for managing and analyzing public records requests at scale. Agency responses are analyzed using AI-assisted tools to surface key findings, identify gaps, and flag policy implications that a surface read might miss.

Every response is assessed for completeness and responsiveness. When agencies provide incomplete, evasive, or legally questionable responses, we say so — and we follow up. The goal is not to embarrass government agencies but to hold them to the transparency standards California law requires.

What We Cover

Our primary focus is California government, including cities, counties, water districts, school districts, universities, and state agencies. Topics include:

Employee compensation and overtime patterns · Bond debt and financial obligations · Contracts and procurement · Environmental records · Staffing and headcount · Government denials and transparency failures

Corrections & Contact

If you represent an agency and believe a factual error has been published, please contact us with documentation and we will review it promptly. We take accuracy seriously and will issue corrections when warranted.

Tips, story ideas, and press inquiries are also welcome. If you have a public records response you'd like analyzed, reach out.

Disclaimer

This publication reports on public records provided by government agencies. We do not independently verify all data contained in agency responses but report what agencies have officially disclosed. Analysis and commentary represent the author's interpretation of publicly available information and are for informational purposes only. Data sourced from public agency responses — verify independently before relying on for any purpose. Nothing published here constitutes legal, financial, or professional advice.