Kansas Public Records: How to Perform a Kansas Public Records Search

The Kansas Open Records Act (KORA) makes provisions for persons who intend to access public records in Kansas. 

Such persons are required to apply for the Kansas public records held in possession of the traditional custodians—mostly government agencies.

They have to meet certain conditions of eligibility in some cases and then pay the applicable service fees while providing valid identification. 

These are some of the things that you must bear in mind should you look at finding public records in Kansas. 

This article seeks to show you a few of the most surefire ways to find public records in Kansas. 

Public Records Kansas: Criminal Records

The Kansas bureau of Investigation manages an online portal devoted to search services, as it relates to finding criminal records. 

Requesters have to register at the portal before they can be allowed to run this Kansas public records' search against the person named on the criminal record in question for $20.

The other option is to submit a completed criminal record search request application to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation by mail. 

The name-based request, if mailed, will be delivered to the following address:

Kansas Bureau of Investigation
Attn: Criminal History Records Section
1620 SouthWest Tyler
Topeka, KS 66612-1837

You can expect the KBI to get a look at your mailed application within 10 days of its receipt, accompanied by the inclusion of the $30 fee for certified copies. 

On the other hand, fingerprint-based criminal record searches can be processed by the KBI. 

The requesters must first obtain a fingerprint card from the bureau and complete it at the local Sheriff’s Office or a firm offering legitimate fingerprinting services. 

What follows next is the compilation of the application packet and the inclusion of the service fee of $45, all mailed to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. 

Public Records Kansas: Court Records

District Court case records are primarily managed by the Kansas Office of Judicial administration and disseminated for a non-refundable $1.5 fee. 

Likewise, electronic copies of appellate case records are available for viewing at the Kansas Courts website via appellate number or name-based searches at the Kansas appellate case search tool feature.

If the sought-after public record is not available online, you may need to visit the courthouse and contact the record custodian as specified by the Kansas Judicial branch. 

Then there's the Kansas Court public access portal that allows you to run a case search against filtering options such as case type or status, location, attorney name, etc. 

Kansas Public Records Search: Marriage Records

Marriage records generated before 1989 are kept in the Kansas State Archives and made available to the general public. 

Access to this record repository is facilitated upon setting up an account and filling out a record application.

Applications for Kansas marriage certificates are responsible for the issuance of more recent marriage records. 

For a certified copy of a marriage record(which goes for $15), the application may be delivered in person, over the phone, or via mail, to the Kansas Office of Vital Statistics.

Public Records in Kansas: Divorce Records

Divorce records can be collected at the Kansas State Archives by all persons, irrespective of if they are directly related to the persons named on the record or not. 

This state agency is responsible for keeping divorce records created before 1989. 

On the other hand, the Department of Health restricts access to the records in its custody to only those with a direct or legitimate interest in the record.

The KDHE allows interested persons to view its record database via in-person record applications, mailed requests, and over-the-phone applications. 

These persons are made to fill in a divorce certificate application and send it to the mailing address contained in the application. 

Public Records Kansas: Birth Records

As with death records, the Kansas State Archives is responsible for the custody of birth records, albeit only for those filed before 1989. 

For more recent birth records, up until 1911, you can contact the Kansas Office of Vital Statistics.

Then there's the office of the clerk in the county where the birth was recorded for birth records dating back to much earlier times. 

In nearly all of these cases, the requesters are required to present a birth certificate application, a valid government ID, and the service charge. They may now mail it to the office of Vital Statistics. 

Kansas Public Records Search: Death Records

In most cases, the clerk of the county where death was recorded is usually the easiest place to find death records in Kansas. 

This is even as the Kansas department of statistics is known to have only started keeping death records on July 1, 1911. 

However, the Kansas State Archives is the official statewide repository for all death records. There, you can find abstract copies of death certificates generated before 1989.

The KDHE also accepts requests by eligible persons to view the death records in its custody. 

Requests of this nature are forwarded via a signed application from the interested persons, replete with a copy of a government-issued ID and the applicable fees. 

And while the standard fee is $15, you may choose to pay an additional $13.95 to expedite your application and send the application to the address:

Kansas Office of Vital Statistics,
1000 Southwest Jackson, Suite 120,
Topeka, KS 66612-2221,
Phone: (877) 305-8315