Report File Naming

All Reporting Software Options

Unless you have a compelling reason to change the recommended file name, we suggest that you accept the default choice. If you do need to change the name, please read the note labeled Important at the bottom of this article.

File Name Pattern

The name given to a new report file by Option A, B, or D (installed version), and the one recommended for third-party or manually-created text files, follows the pattern of - form prefix + ID number + sequence number + extension.

The form prefix is the first letter of the file name, which is associated with one of the four form types:

P - Form 26,
A - Form 26A,
M - Form 25, or
S - Form 27.

The next 5 to 8 characters of the file name is a DEC-issued ID number. The ID number used is based on the form type of the file:

Form 25 and 27 - commercial permit number,
Form 26 - certification ID, or
Form 26A - either the business registration number (if any) or certification ID.

The next two digits are an (optional) unique sequence number between 00 and 99.

The last part is the extension of ".txt" ( Option A or C) or ".xls" ( Option B), which identifies the file as text or an Excel file.

Naming Example

If you are using Option A and save a Form 26 file in a folder already containing another Form 26 file and both files have a Certification ID number of C1234567, the file would be named PC123456701.txt.

Important

If you decide to use a different name, the first letter of the file name must still match the form type and use the correct extension for the software option as shown above; the initial letter is used by the Pesticide Reporting Service Bureau to identify the type of form that was submitted and the extension identifies the file type.