Ask for the records log of pretty much any city and you’ll find reporters looking for stories: mayoral parking tickets in Spokane, community court success rates in Vancouver, illegal tree cuttings in Tacoma, and rumors of secret tunnels in Boise.
In InvestigateWest’s case, our requests were focused on the public records process itself. First, we asked 15 cities for their log of public records requests between November 2022 and November 2023. Then, we asked for all communications involving either the mayor or the city administrator or manager from a week in October.