Commerce, California Public Records

Commerce, Los Angeles County is policed by a complex multi-agency patchwork. LAPD serves the City of Los Angeles across 21 geographic divisions and approximately 9,000 sworn officers. LASD serves unincorporated areas and 42 contract cities from 23 patrol stations. Independent municipal departments include Long Beach PD, Pasadena PD, Burbank PD, Glendale PD, Santa Monica PD, and 41 others. The LA Metro Transit Authority has its own transit police force. The California Highway Patrol (CHP) covers freeways and unincorporated areas. LAPD crime data is published at data.lacity.org. Under SB 2 (2023), all California law enforcement agencies must proactively disclose sustained misconduct records, use-of-force incidents, and officer-involved shooting investigations.

LASD operates 7 major detention facilities in Los Angeles County: Twin Towers Correctional Facility (downtown LA, largest in the US), Men's Central Jail (MCJ), Century Regional Detention Center (Lynwood, houses women), Pitchess Detention Center (Castaic, 4 camps), North County Correctional Facility, East Facility, and South Facility. Each city with its own police department may also operate a city jail for short-term holds. To find a current inmate, use the LASD Inmate Information Center (app5.lasd.org) and search by name or booking number. Bail bond information, court dates, and housing location are available online. For inmates in city jails — Long Beach, Pasadena, Burbank, etc. — contact each city's police department directly.

Commerce residents are served by the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the state trial court handling all criminal, civil, family, probate, and small claims matters for Los Angeles County. The nearest courthouse is the Downey Courthouse located at 7500 East Imperial Highway, Downey, CA 90242 (telephone: 562-803-7009), which handles felony and misdemeanor criminal cases, civil matters over $25,000, family law (divorce, custody, support), probate and conservatorship cases, and general civil litigation. Small claims cases (disputes up to $10,000 for individuals, $5,000 for businesses) are also heard at this location. For traffic citations and infractions, many Commerce residents may be assigned to the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse at 275 East Center Street, Long Beach, CA 90805, or other nearby branch courts depending on where the citation was issued. The Los Angeles County Superior Court operates an online case access system at www.lacourt.org where the public can search civil, criminal, family, probate, and traffic cases by party name or case number; civil case information is generally accessible, though some family law and juvenile records are confidential under California law. The court also maintains an Online Services Portal for e-filing and case management. Certified copies of court documents cost $25 for the first page and $0.50 for each additional page as of 2025; remote access fees may apply for electronic document retrieval. In-person record searches and copying services are available during regular business hours at each courthouse location. Complex civil cases and certain appeals may be handled at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse at 111 North Hill Street in downtown Los Angeles.

Criminal records in Los Angeles County are maintained at multiple levels. Felony and misdemeanor convictions are held by the LA Superior Court District Clerk and searchable online at lacourt.org. State-level criminal history is maintained by the California DOJ and accessible via Live Scan fingerprint background checks through authorized providers (oag.ca.gov/fingerprints). Name-based checks ($25) are available for non-criminal-justice purposes. The FBI maintains a national criminal history database (NCIC) accessible to law enforcement. Sex offender registration is handled by LAPD and LASD, with public lookup at meganslaw.ca.gov. California does not have a centralized online felony lookup — court records must be searched by county.

Arrest records in Los Angeles County are maintained by the arresting agency — LAPD (21 geographic divisions), LASD (23 patrol stations), or one of 46 independent city police departments. Under the California Public Records Act, arrest records are public unless sealed or expunged by court order. LAPD arrest data is published on the LA City open data portal (data.lacity.org). LASD arrest records may be requested from the LASD Records Bureau. California Proposition 57 (2016) and AB 1950 (2021) have modified certain sentence and probation rules that affect record visibility. Individuals may petition LA Superior Court to expunge (dismiss) eligible convictions under Penal Code §1203.4.

Property and land records for Commerce are maintained by Los Angeles County agencies. The Los Angeles County Assessor's Office, headquartered at 500 West Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (telephone: 213-974-3211, website: assessor.lacounty.gov), maintains property assessment data for all parcels in Commerce, including current assessed values, ownership information, property characteristics, exemptions, and assessment history. The Assessor's online portal at portal.assessor.lacounty.gov allows free searches by address, Assessor's Identification Number (AIN), or owner name, providing detailed property information, tax roll data, and ownership transfers. Commerce properties are identified by unique AIN numbers, and the database includes building square footage, land size, year built, and recent sales information. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, located at 12400 Imperial Highway, Norwalk, CA 90650 (telephone: 562-462-2060, website: lavote.gov), records and maintains official documents affecting real property, including grant deeds, deeds of trust, mortgages, reconveyances, mechanic's liens, easements, maps, and other recorded instruments dating back to the 1850s. The Registrar-Recorder provides free online access to recorded documents and their images through the Official Records search portal at lavote.gov under the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk services; users can search by document number, recording date, or names of grantors and grantees. Copies of recorded documents can be ordered online with fees of $1.50 per page for the first ten pages and $0.50 for each additional page. Los Angeles County also maintains a GIS mapping system at planning.lacounty.gov/gis providing interactive parcel maps, zoning overlays, and geographic data layers for research and planning purposes.

Commerce has one of the most unique economies in California, with a daytime working population exceeding 50,000 people despite a residential population of only 12,800—a ratio of nearly four workers for every resident. The city is a major industrial and logistics hub within the Los Angeles metropolitan area, capitalizing on its strategic location adjacent to Interstate 5, Interstate 710, State Route 60, and multiple rail lines. Major employers include Southern California Edison's regional facilities, the Citadel Outlets (a 445,000-square-foot premium outlet shopping center that attracts millions of visitors annually), Commerce Casino & Hotel (one of the largest card casinos in the world employing over 2,000 people), FedEx distribution and logistics centers, and hundreds of manufacturing, warehousing, wholesale, and distribution companies. The city's business-friendly policies, ample industrial-zoned land, and excellent transportation connectivity have attracted companies in industries including food processing, metal fabrication, plastics manufacturing, apparel distribution, and e-commerce fulfillment. Commerce generates substantial sales tax and business license revenue relative to its small residential base, allowing the city to maintain extensive public services and facilities. The median household income for Commerce residents is approximately $50,000, below the Los Angeles County median of approximately $76,000, reflecting the city's working-class residential neighborhoods. Recent economic developments include ongoing expansion of logistics facilities to serve e-commerce demand, redevelopment projects along major corridors, and continued investment in the Citadel Outlets. Commerce's economy is tightly integrated with greater Los Angeles County's massive goods movement sector, serving as a critical node in regional supply chains connecting the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to inland markets.

The City of Commerce contracts with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for law enforcement services, with the Commerce Sheriff's Station located at 950 Goodrich Boulevard, Commerce, CA 90040 (telephone: 323-887-1226, website: lasd.org). The station serves the city's 6.5 square miles and handles patrol, investigations, traffic enforcement, and community policing. Residents can request copies of police reports, incident reports, and traffic collision reports by visiting the station in person or submitting a written request; fees typically apply for report copies. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department headquarters is located at 211 West Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (telephone: 213-229-1700), which oversees countywide operations and maintains centralized records. For arrests and jail bookings, Los Angeles County operates one of the nation's largest jail systems; residents can search for inmates through the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Inmate Information Center at app4.lasd.org/iic/ajis_search.cfm, which displays booking dates, charges, bail amounts, housing location, and booking photographs for individuals currently in custody or recently released. To request law enforcement records under California law, residents must submit requests pursuant to the California Public Records Act (California Government Code §§ 6250-6270), which requires agencies to respond within 10 days and provide records unless exempted for reasons such as ongoing investigations, privacy concerns, or public safety. Senate Bill 1421 and Senate Bill 16 expanded public access to certain peace officer personnel records involving serious uses of force, dishonesty, and sexual assault. Requests should be submitted in writing to the Commerce Sheriff's Station or the Sheriff's Department's Public Records Unit, specifying the records sought with reasonable particularity.

Vital records for Commerce residents are issued by California state and Los Angeles County agencies. Birth and death certificates are maintained by the California Department of Public Health, Vital Records office at 1501 Capitol Avenue, MS 5103, Sacramento, CA 95814 (telephone: 916-445-2684, website: cdph.ca.gov/vitals). Certified birth certificates cost $33 for the first copy and $26 for each additional copy ordered at the same time; death certificates cost $27 for the first copy and $26 for additional copies. Online ordering is available through VitalChek at cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/Pages/Vital-Records-Obtaining-Certified-Copies-of-Vital-Record-Documents.aspx with additional processing fees; standard processing takes 5-7 weeks, while expedited service (5-10 business days) costs extra. Only authorized persons may request vital records under California Health and Safety Code § 103526: the registrant (for birth certificates), immediate family members, legal representatives, or persons with a direct and tangible interest. Birth records are available for events from July 1905 forward; death records from July 1905 forward. For same-day service or walk-in requests, the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk office at 12400 Imperial Highway, Norwalk, CA 90650 (telephone: 562-462-2060) issues certified birth and death certificates for events that occurred within Los Angeles County, with the same fees as state-issued certificates. Marriage licenses are issued by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk; couples must appear in person to apply, pay a $91 fee (as of 2025), and ceremonies must occur within 90 days of license issuance. Certified marriage certificate copies cost $16. Divorce records are maintained by the Los Angeles County Superior Court where the dissolution was granted, not by the Registrar-Recorder. Marriage records are available from 1852 forward; indexes are searchable online at lavote.gov.

The City of Commerce requires businesses operating within city limits to obtain a business license through the Finance Department at Commerce City Hall, 2535 Commerce Way, Commerce, CA 90040 (telephone: 323-722-4805, website: ci.commerce.ca.us). Business license fees vary based on business type and gross receipts, with annual renewal required; the city provides an online business license lookup tool on its website for verifying active licenses. Given Commerce's industrial character, the city has specific licensing and zoning regulations for manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution facilities. Fictitious business name (DBA) statements for businesses operating under a name other than the owner's legal name must be filed with the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk at 12400 Imperial Highway, Norwalk, CA 90650 (telephone: 562-462-2060); the filing fee is $26 for the first business name and $10 for each additional name on the same form. DBAs must be renewed every five years and published in a newspaper of general circulation. The County Registrar-Recorder provides a free online DBA search at lavote.gov under Business Filings. For California state business entity formation and registration, the California Secretary of State, Business Programs Division, maintains the official registry of corporations, LLCs, limited partnerships, and other entities at 1500 11th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 (website: bizfileonline.sos.ca.gov). The free online Business Search tool allows lookups by entity name, entity number, or registered agent, displaying current status, formation date, principal office address, and agent for service of process. Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) financing statements and lien searches are also filed with and searchable through the California Secretary of State's UCC division at sos.ca.gov/ucc. Commercial property owners in Commerce can look up assessed values and property tax information through the Los Angeles County Assessor's portal at assessor.lacounty.gov; the Los Angeles County Treasurer and Tax Collector (225 North Hill Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012, telephone: 213-893-7935, website: ttc.lacounty.gov) handles property tax billing and collection.

Commerce voters are served by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, which administers elections for the county's 5.8 million registered voters. The main office is located at 12400 Imperial Highway, Norwalk, CA 90650 (telephone: 800-815-2856, website: lavote.gov). Commerce residents can register to vote online at registertovote.ca.gov, California's statewide voter registration portal managed by the Secretary of State; the deadline is 15 days before any election, though California offers conditional voter registration allowing eligible citizens to register and vote provisionally through Election Day at designated locations. Voters must be U.S. citizens, California residents, at least 18 years old by Election Day, and not currently serving a state or federal prison term for a felony conviction. Commerce holds municipal elections for Mayor and City Council positions; the city has five council members elected to four-year staggered terms, with the Mayor elected separately. Commerce's next general municipal election is scheduled for March 2026, when voters will decide contested races for two City Council seats. Residents can find their assigned polling place, vote center, or ballot drop box location using the polling place lookup tool at lavote.gov/locator; Los Angeles County transitioned to a Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP) model offering vote centers open for multiple days before and on Election Day, plus expanded vote-by-mail and drop box options. California election records that are publicly accessible include voter registration statistics (though individual voter information is protected), campaign finance disclosures filed with the City Clerk and the California Fair Political Practices Commission, candidate statements and filings, and precinct-level election results. In the November 2024 presidential election, Los Angeles County reported approximately 63% voter turnout among registered voters, with over 3.6 million ballots cast countywide. Looking ahead to the November 3, 2026 general election, Commerce and Los Angeles County voters will decide critical races including California's gubernatorial election (Governor Gavin Newsom's term expires in 2027), all 80 California State Assembly seats, 20 of 40 State Senate seats, all U.S. House seats representing Los Angeles County districts, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors seats for Districts 1, 3, and 5, Los Angeles County Sheriff, District Attorney, and numerous judicial offices and local ballot measures. U.S. Senate seats are not up in 2026 for California (next in 2028). California offers universal vote-by-mail; all registered voters automatically receive a ballot by mail beginning 29 days before each election, which can be returned postage-free by mail (postmarked by Election Day), deposited at any ballot drop box, or brought to any vote center. Voters can track their ballot status at california.ballottrax.net. Commerce residents can access sample ballots, voter guides, campaign finance data, and local candidate information at lavote.gov and the City of Commerce website at ci.commerce.ca.us.