BRB's Public Records Blog

Aviation Records

Search Records on Airports

One of the best private sites to find detailed information for free about an airport, including ownership and management, is www.airnav.com. You can search by state or by U.S. Territory.

Another excellent resource is GCR & Associates. Visit www.gcr1.com and click on the Airport IQ link for airport master records and reports.

Aviation Associations

With well over 400,000 members, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) calls itself the largest, most-influential aviation association in the world. AOPA, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, MD 21701, 301-695-2000,  www.aopa.org.

The International Air Transportation Association (IATA) represents 250 airlines. Four U.S. offices and one Canadian office are found at their web page www.iata.org. While there is not a lot of public record related information, this association is a good venue to learn about airport planning and safety.

Note: This tip is from Michael Sankey's book Public Record Reseach TIPS Book

Sources for Finding Intellectual Property

United States Patent and Trademark Office www.uspto.gov/main/patents.htm

This is the ultimate source. If you can spend some time learning to correctly search within the Web site, you will get the best results. Remember, when you are searching for a company, refer to it as assignee. Separately, search the assignee or the town, if small or unique, (skip New York and Los Angeles), and search for the inventor by last name. Other reliable sources include:

www.freepatentsonline.com -- Indexes the full page, but does not give the full results.
www.patentgenius.com -- Excellent search capabilities but, unfortunately, the results are limited.
www.google.com/patents -- Does not index the full page.
 

Note: This tip is from Cynthia Hetherington's book  Business Background Investigations

BRB Publications Launches New Web Page www.verifyprolicense.com Providing Access to State Licensing Boards

BRB Publications annouced today a new website that enables the public to verify individuals and businesses required to be licensed or have a certification or registration.

This free, new resource enables a researcher to check the representations people make to the public in day-to-day personal or business life. Users of www.verifyprolicense.comcan choose an occupation or business category, by state, to find the direct address, phone number, and web page of the licensing or certification board. The resulting screen also provides a hot link to a License Validator to verify the license, permit, and registration information for individuals and or businesses. Another valuable feature of the search is that it often indicates when disciplinary action has been taken against an individual or business. This site is updated weekly and includes over 8,000 occupations with over 4,500 "name searchable" links providing immediate results.

According to BRB Publication’s CEO Michael Sankey, "Professional occupational licensing and non-voluntary certifications and registrations are generally a matter of public record, intended to protect the public from fraud and the misrepresentations of qualifications. It is simply a smart business practice to check on those with whom you deal, particularly if strangers come into a home, or if money and property are involved."

Also, the new website is dedicated to educating the public about The Sue Weaver C.A.U.S.E. (Consumer Awareness of Unsafe Service Employment).

About the Sue Weaver C.A.U.S.E.
On August 27, 2001, Sue Weaver was brutally raped and beaten to death by a twice convicted sex-offender. Ms. Weaver’s attacker was hired through a major department store to do service work in her home. In memory of Sue Weaver, C.A.U.S.E. was founded in 2004 as a non-profit organization that brings awareness and education to consumers and employers regarding the necessity of criminal background checks on all service employees, contractors and subcontractors hired to work in or near clients’ homes. For more information about C.A.U.S.E. visit www.sueweavercause.org.

Key Trade Associations - Public Record Research Tip

Researching a fact or problem related to public records or finding the right public record vendor can be difficult. People often overlook trade associations as resources of information and companies.

A list of the nation's top trade associations whose members are involved with public records to some degree, visit http://www.brbpub.com/prs/TradeAssn.asp

© excerpt from The Sourcebook to Public Record Information

Comprehensive Source Books for Driver History Records & Motor Vehicle Records

Where would you go to investigate the driving restrictions and access procedures for all 50 states?  What if you needed to decode a violation on an out-of-state MVR?  There is a resource that will answer those questions and more…The MVR Book and The MVR Decoder Digest from BRB Publications.  Available in print February, 2009 and now on the Internet.

The 2009 MVR Book and The 2009 MVR Decoder Digest are the only comprehensive sourcebooks for driver history records and motor vehicle records.  Now in their 20th edition, these resource tools provide the answers you need in practical terms.  The MVR Decoder Digest translates the codes and abbreviations of violations and licensing categories that appear on motor vehicle records in all states.  The MVR Book is the national reference that details privacy restrictions, access procedures, regulations and systems of all state held driver and vehicle records.

Professionals can access the same information online.    MVR-Web has the entire content from both books in a PDF format posted at www.mvrdecoder.com.  The annual subscription is only $49 per year.  A single password allows two simultaneous users.  MVR-Web is updated periodically throughout the year as changes occur.

Check Status of Florida Driver License

The Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles provides a free online status check of any Florida driver license number. Only the license number is needed to access. No personal information is released.

Visit https://www6.hsmv.state.fl.us/dlcheck/dlcheckinq. (Note: the last letter is Q not G).
 
To check the status of a HAZMAT endorsement on a Florida commercial DL, visit https://www2.hsmv.state.fl.us/.

A third DL status check provides an insurance update and allows parents to view the driving record of their children under 18. To accomplish this, the parent must enter the last four digits of the SSN and the child’s DOB. Go to https://www6.hsmv.state.fl.us/DLCheck/main.jsp.
 
© excerpt from The 2009 MVR Book

The National Motor Vehicle Title Information System

The National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) is a U.S. Department of Justice System operated by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA). The NMVTIS is designed to grant available information about vehicle history (such as reported odometer readings and brands, including flood damage, junk and salvage vehicle data) to the states, law enforcement, prospective purchasers, and insurance carriers in order to reliably verify information on a vehicle prior to issuing a new title.

Effective January 30, 2009 the records will be open to the public. One will be able to check a car's history online for little cost at www.nmvtis.gov. By entering the vehicle's VIN - and if the car was registered in one of the 36 participating states - the following data may be displayed: 1) date title was issued and state where issued; 2) latest recorded mileage information; 3) theft history; and 4) salvage history and if the vehicle was ever designated as a total loss. Effective the same date, the database will also be available for resale purposes by third-party providers, but with contractual obligations.

Reportedly, in March, the salvage records from major insurance companies are to be added to the national database.

The 36 participating states represent over 73% of the U.S. population. Some of the states refusing to participate include California, Illinois, New York, and Pennsylvania.

New Webpage for Finding Local Record Retrievers

The Public Record Retriever Network (PRRN) is pleased to announce a new webpage at www.prrn.us. The page allows the public to search by state and county (or parish) to find a local public record retriever PRRN member who can research a name or access a record file at the local the court or recorder's office. The webpage also has several informative articles with facts about record searching. The other web location for searching a PRRN member is still active at www.brbpub.com/prrn/search.aspx. 

Commerce Department - Import/Export DBs

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, provides  three lists described below that are relevant to import/export transactions.  www.bis.doc.gov

Denied Persons List

The purpose of the Denied Persons List is to prevent the illegal export of dual-use items before they occur and to investigate and assist in the prosecution of violators of the Export Administration Regulations. www.bis.doc.gov/dpl/default.shtm

Unverified List

This is a list of parties whom BIS has been unable to verify in some manner in prior transactions. The Unverified List includes names and countries of foreign persons who in the past were parties to a transaction with respect to which BIS could not conduct a pre-license check (“PLC”) or a post-shipment verification (“PSV”) for reasons outside of the U.S. Government’s control. If you would like to be informed when changes occur to the Unverified List, consider subscribing to the BIS Email Notification Service.

www.bis.doc.gov/enforcement/unverifiedlist/unverified_parties.html

Entity List

The Entity List, available in PDF or ASCII text format, is a list of parties whose presence in a transaction can trigger a license requirement under the Export Administration Regulations. The original purpose of this list was to inform the public of entities whose activities imposed a risk of diverting exported and re-exported items into programs related to weapons of mass destruction. Now the list includes those with any license requirements imposed on the transaction by other provisions of the Export Administration Regulations. The list specifies the license requirements that apply to each listed party. www.bis.doc.gov/entities/default.htm

© excerpt from The Public Record TIPS Book

 

Free Public Relations Webinar

This topic is outside our normal scope of public records but in the light of the current economy we thought it would be a useful resource. 

Title: "Public Relations Tactics to Build and Promote Your Business"
Date: Thursday, February 12, 2009
Time: 12:00 PM - 12:30 PM EST
Cost: FREE
Presenter:  search it right™

Every business and nonprofit can use free publicity.

And an effective public relations campaign using professional-level tactics should be an essential component to your marketing plan. Using PR tactics to distinguish your business, products and services from your competitors’ can help you to garner the attention of newspapers and other media sources, including the internet, and ultimately help you to build your business on a shoestring budget.

What you'll learn:

1. Learn how to effectively use the one major public relations tool you’ll need to succeed.

2. Understand the difference between advertising and publicity.

3. Determine what is considered newsworthy in the eyes of a journalist.

4. Understand what an angle is and how to thread it throughout your PR effort.

Click here for more information.