The cameras are easy to find. Who authorized them, who they share with, and what they keep is often not public. In California, the way you find out is a Public Records Act request, and a request to a city is just an email. This writes it for you.
Start by checking what is already public. Look up the agency, map the cameras, and read the transparency portal. If none of them tell you who authorized the system or who it shares with, that silence is exactly what the request below is for.
The request is sent from you and belongs to you. We store nothing. You are asking your own government for its own records.
Paste it into your own email to the city clerk or records custodian, or use the button. Keep a copy of the date you sent it.
Under Government Code section 7922.535, the agency must respond with a determination within 10 days. An extension is allowed only in specific cases.
Follow up in writing citing the 10-day rule. Vague denials and miscited exemptions are common. Persistence is how the reporting on this was done.
This is a template, not legal advice. Every request goes out under your name. We never see it.