Access San Bernardino Public Records

Which San Bernardino Records Are Open

Access depends on the record, its custodian, and the requested form. An online index may confirm that an item exists without exposing the item itself. A certified copy bears the keeper's official certification, while an informational copy may have less legal use. The table starts with the most useful San Bernardino record systems and states where the online route ends.

Sealed and confidential cases, juvenile files, adoption records, protected voter addresses, and sensitive identifiers are not ordinary open records. The county also routes routine copies through the office that owns the series. Voter file rules are treated in detail under San Bernardino voter records, not as a general records request.

San Bernardino Records Under California Law

The California Public Records Act, Government Code sections 7920.000 through 7931.000, covers state and local agency material. Any person may seek a reasonably described, nonexempt record. Section 7922.535 gives an agency 10 days to decide whether it has disclosable records. Unusual circumstances can support a written extension of up to 14 more days. That determination period is not a promise that all copies will arrive in 10 days.

Government Code section 7922.530 calls for prompt inspection or copies after direct duplication costs or a fee set by another law are paid. A person inspecting agency records may use personal equipment to photograph or copy them unless that would harm the files, reach a system without permission, or place an unreasonable burden on the agency. Section 7922.600 also requires reasonable help with identifying the right records and the system that holds them.

Custodian

The agency or office that keeps and controls a record.

Index

A finding list with names, dates, numbers, or titles, not the full document image.

Certified copy

A copy the custodian formally attests is a true copy of its record.

Exemption

A law that permits or requires an agency to withhold all or part of a record.

Note: A records index can be open even when the linked image, confidential fields, or certified copy has separate access rules.

San Bernardino Recorder Index Access

The county Recorder's official-records page describes a Document Search from 1925 to the present. Its property-research instructions narrow grantor and grantee chain work to 1958-present and direct earlier work to microfilm at the main Recorder office. These statements serve different tasks. The broad index covers more document types, while the property instructions describe the name-by-name path used to trace title.

Grantor means the party giving or transferring an interest. Grantee means the party receiving it. Search spelling variants, record the document number or book and page, and compare the legal description as the chain moves back. Street address is not the Recorder's stated title-search method.

The index does not display document images. Contents may be viewed at the Hall of Records in San Bernardino or the High Desert Government Center in Hesperia. Copies may be ordered online, in person, or by mail. The Recorder lists $4 for the first page, $1.50 for each later page, and $1.50 per page for a certificate under seal. Online card payments add 3.5 percent. As of July 1, 2026, listed mail charges are $3.50 for standard mail and $29 for priority mail.

Note: Map copies may be purchased only at the San Bernardino Hall of Records, not through the regular online copy route.

San Bernardino Property Record Limits

For a parcel or street address, the Assessor is the better first custodian. govPIMS supports parcel, situs-address, and name searches, including first and last name, active or inactive names, and formatted or unformatted names. A situs address is the physical site. It can differ from the mailing address used for tax notices. Result modules may include roll-value history, parcel history, owner history, supplemental assessments, land details, building traits, and document numbers.

The San Bernardino County property information page introduces the official Assessor tools and their limits.

The county makes clear that assessment data does not decide permitted use or legal ownership. A recorded deed or qualified title source is needed for the legal ownership question.

San Bernardino Court Records Channels

The Superior Court's Court Access Portal, or CAP, provides case-number and citation routes. Public party-name search requires an account and search credits. The official instructions require a filing-date range, allow a middle name to be omitted, and cap results at 200. Public name search does not permit a date-of-birth or driver-license query. Business-name search uses the same portal setting.

The court's civil case information and document sales page explains remote access to legally public civil documents.

Remote civil documents cost $0.50 per page. CAP can show a case number, filing date, party name, case type, status, and available documents, but sealed, confidential, paternity, minor-related, and other protected files are withheld.

Data for cases filed before 1998 may be limited. For an older file, a certified copy, or a matter absent from CAP, contact the court district that holds the case. The clerk, not the portal's technical contact, handles case questions. Online access therefore supplements the counter; it does not replace it.

San Bernardino Vital Records Copies

The Recorder-Clerk issues certificates for births and deaths in San Bernardino County and for marriage licenses purchased in the county. Requests can be made in person, by mail, or through the county's online vendor route. Mail requests for an authorized certified copy need a sworn statement and notarization. Informational copies are available to people outside the authorized classes for birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage records, but they are marked as invalid for establishing identity.

The county vital-records application page separates certificate type, copy type, applicant relationship, event facts, delivery details, and the sworn statement.

County fees are $34 for birth, $26 for death, and $19 for marriage certificate searches and copies. Confidential marriage certificates go only to the spouses or a person with a court order.

Recent deaths may take 30 to 60 days to reach the Recorder-Clerk, so the County Department of Public Health is the earlier channel. Birth certificates from 1972 through 1977 may be delayed for Social Security number redaction. Events outside the county go to the county of registration or California Department of Public Health. Divorce decrees belong to the Superior Court, not the Recorder-Clerk.

San Bernardino Public Records Offices

San Bernardino County has no centralized recordkeeping system. Direct contact with the office that created or maintains the item avoids a misrouted request. These three keepers cover the largest share of county records tied to names, property, certificates, and cases.

County Historical Archives has a separate archival role, with staff reached at 909-387-1001 or ARC-DLRECArchive@arc.sbcounty.gov. The City Clerk is the keeper for indexed city books, minutes, and municipal records, while city departments retain many working files.

San Bernardino Permit Record Geography

A San Bernardino mailing label does not always identify the right permit or police custodian. Property inside city limits uses City Building and Safety, City Clerk records channels, and the city's eDocs repository. The current city permit series runs from 1996 forward, while a separate historical search covers records older than 1995. Search fields include address, permit number, license number, and parcel number. Plans or added files may require a clerk request.

An unincorporated parcel goes instead to County Land Use Services. Its online permit research covers Building and Safety applications after June 30, 2017, with a historical permit research process for older work. The Recorder and County Historical Archives do not keep building permits. For reports, the County Sheriff covers its own activity, unincorporated areas, and contract cities, while City of San Bernardino Police records remain with the city.

This city-versus-county split is a practical geography check. Confirm jurisdiction through the parcel and agency before submitting a request. It can save a full request cycle and prevent the wrong office from searching a series it never held.

Note: City limits, unincorporated territory, and contract-service areas can place two nearby San Bernardino addresses under different records custodians.

San Bernardino Sheriff Record Gaps

The Sheriff's Records Division maintains crime, arrest, traffic, incident, property, firearm, vehicle, boat, and missing-person records. Requests may go through the county portal. Reports from Sheriff stations are generally available about 10 business days after the report date. Pre-April 2019 reports may be requested at the counter or by mail with a written request, photo ID, incident date and location, and the report number when known.

A rare access gap affects reports taken from April 23, 2019 through April 7, 2023. The Sheriff says it cannot process those requests because of a network service interruption and gives no estimated restoration date. Collision reports also have proper-interest rules under Vehicle Code section 20012, so they are not released as unrestricted open files.

The public inmate locator is a separate channel. It searches a 10-digit booking number or a combination of last, first, and middle name, birth date or approximate age, and gender. If birth date is unknown, the age search spans two years before and after the age entered. A person not found online can be checked through Public Information at 909-350-2476.

Note: Sheriff Records releases its own agency files; city police and California Highway Patrol records must go to those agencies.

Older San Bernardino Records Routes

Older records often require a switch from web portal to archive, microfilm, or staff help. County Historical Archives offers an online collection search, but many holdings remain in-house. Probate proceedings from 1853 through 1926 are searchable through its Arrowhead database. Great Registers of Voters from 1866 through 1908 are held in-house, and birth and death registers cover 1873 through 1910.

Assessor lot and parcel books from 1895 to about 1950 can show the owner or taxpayer, legal description, land value, improvement value, trees and vines, and water. An improvement's first appearance can help estimate when a structure entered the tax record. For deeds before the modern grantor and grantee workflow, use Recorder microfilm at the main office.

Family and heir research can connect the archive's probate files and recorded transfers with San Bernardino obituaries and cemetery material. For events before county formation in 1853, check Los Angeles County as well. Riverside County's 1892 creation from part of San Bernardino County can also shift the later custodian for places near the changed boundary.

The 1891 Hall of Records and the courthouse damage caused by the 1923 earthquake help explain why the oldest county series are not one seamless online collection. An absence in a web result is not proof that an archival record never existed.

San Bernardino State Record Searches

Some name-based records are state, not local. The California Secretary of State's bizfile search covers corporations, limited liability companies, and limited partnerships by entity name or number. Public filings may show an entity's status, filing history, agents, managers, or addresses, depending on the filed form. County fictitious business names remain with the Recorder-Clerk instead.

The official business entity search is the state filing route.

The result is a filing record, not a general profile of every person connected with the business. UCC filings use a separate Secretary of State route and can be searched by debtor, secured party, or file number.

California's State Controller also keeps unclaimed property after it is transferred to the state. The official unclaimed-property page directs people to the no-fee claim search.

A matching name or former address can help with estate and family research. The state says there is no fee and no deadline to claim property once transferred.

Avoid San Bernardino Record Scams

On April 10, 2025, San Bernardino County warned about deceptive letters that cited legitimate lien records while pressing taxpayers to pay. A real document number or public filing does not make the sender an agency. Verify the claim in the Recorder's official index, resist urgent payment demands, and contact ARC at 909-387-8306 or the Auditor-Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector at 909-387-8308.

The same check applies to official-looking business filing solicitations and fee offers for unclaimed property. California's direct unclaimed-property claim process is free. Government filing data should be confirmed with the named custodian before money or personal data changes hands.

Request San Bernardino Public Records

A good request identifies an existing record rather than asking an agency to answer a broad question or create a new report. Name the date range, subject, location, department, and known file or parcel number. Ask for electronic copies when that format exists, or request inspection if reviewing the file will help narrow what must be copied.

1. Choose the custodian. Route deeds and vital certificates to Recorder-Clerk, cases to the court, city files to the city department, and sheriff material to Sheriff Records.
2. Check the routine channel. Use the official index, certificate application, court portal, archive search, or inmate locator before filing a broad CPRA request.
3. Describe the record. Give a useful date span, names, address, record type, and known document, report, case, or parcel number.
4. Select access and delivery. State whether inspection, an electronic file, a regular copy, or a certified copy is needed. Ask for a fee estimate when volume is unclear.
5. Review the response. An agency may produce records, cite an exemption, redact protected fields, seek an extension, or help narrow the request.

City departments use the City of San Bernardino request portal, which also exposes prior requests and responsive files. For county departmental material, the San Bernardino County request portal accepts and tracks requests and lets users search prior responses.

The portal is an intake tool, not a central warehouse. Birth, death, marriage, real estate, election, divorce, blueprint, and school records still follow their specialized custodians and forms.