The MuckRock 50 States of FOIA Project aims to shed light on what it’s like to work with public records around the U.S., through the voices of requesters state by state. This time, we focus on the state of California.

Jennifer LaFleur is the data journalism editor at the Center for Investigative Reporting, and has years of experience filing requests for government data. She shares indispensable tips on working with agencies throughout the process, knowing your rights as a requester and crafting stories about transparency.