About the Salt Lake County Clerk
The Salt Lake County Clerk is an elected county office at the County Government Center on State Street. The current clerk is Lannie K. Chapman. The office is organized into divisions that handle elections, marriage, passports, and the County Council clerk function. Its work touches everyday life: getting married, registering to vote, applying for a passport, or pulling a council record.
Salt Lake County Clerk
2001 South State Street, Suite S1-200
Salt Lake City, UT 84190
(385) 468-7400
Mon-Fri, 8:00 AM-5:00 PM
This is a different office from the Clerk of Court, which keeps court case files at the Matheson Courthouse. The shared word in the names is the main reason people send requests to the wrong place.
The office sits on the south end of State Street at the County Government Center, not downtown at the courthouse. So a trip for a marriage license or a voter question lands at a different address than a trip for a court file.
What the Salt Lake County Clerk Handles
The office splits its work across four main divisions. Each one serves a different need, and none of them keeps court case files.
- Elections - Voter registration, ballot processing, voter certificates, and party affiliation changes.
- Marriage - Marriage license applications, ceremonies, and certified or uncertified copies.
- Passport - Passport applications by appointment and passport-photo services.
- Council Clerk - Minutes, agendas, audio, streaming, and correspondence for the County Council.
If your need is a court case, a warrant, or a jail record, the county clerk is not the office. Those go to the court, the Sheriff, or the state agencies that hold them. The county clerk's lane is civil life events and county government, not criminal justice.
One more note on records. The county Health Department, through Vital Records, issues birth and death certificates and abstracts of marriage and divorce. So even within county government, a few different offices touch the records people commonly ask the clerk about.
Salt Lake County Marriage Licenses and Records
The Marriage Division is the busiest public-facing part of the office. You apply for a license online, then complete it at an appointment, or you book a ceremony performed by the Clerk. Both applicants bring a photo ID and a Social Security number or knowledge of it, and the license fee is $50.
The division also issues marriage copies after the fact, by mail or by phone. A mail request needs the names as used at application, the date and place of marriage, and the correct fee. A phone request works only for one of the spouses on the license. For the full process and divorce-record path, see Salt Lake County marriage and divorce records.
One detail trips up the recently divorced. If a person divorced within 30 days of the new ceremony, they must bring a certified copy of the divorce decree to the appointment. That decree comes from the court, not the county clerk, which is a small but common example of the two offices crossing paths.
Salt Lake County Clerk, Marriage Division
2001 South State Street, Suite S2-200
Salt Lake City, UT 84114
(385) 468-7300
Mon-Fri, 8:00 AM-5:00 PM
Utah law sets who can perform the ceremony. Under Utah Code Title 30, that list includes ministers, priests, and rabbis 18 or older, judges and court commissioners, the governor and other top state officers, mayors and county executives, state legislators, and the county clerk or a designee. The Clerk can even authorize a one-time designee to solemnize a single ceremony, which lets a friend or relative officiate.
The Salt Lake County Mutual Commitment Registry
Beyond marriage, the county keeps a Mutual Commitment Registry, a local record that is not a marriage license. Two declarants, both 18 or older, can file a declaration if they share a primary residence. They bring ID and two of four proofs of a shared life, such as a joint loan or lease, a beneficiary designation, a mutual power of attorney, or proof that one can sign for the other's account.
The filing fee is $30 and includes two certified copies. If a prior declaration was terminated, six months must pass from the notice of termination before a new one can be filed. The registry is its own record, separate from a marriage license and from any court case.
Salt Lake County Clerk Fees
Most county clerk fees are tied to marriage records. The license has a flat fee, and copies are priced by type. The Mutual Commitment Registry has its own fee that includes copies.
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Marriage license | $50 |
| Uncertified marriage copy by mail | $2 |
| Certified marriage copy by mail | $5 |
| Phone order copy fee | $3 |
| Mutual commitment declaration | $30 |
Note: The mutual commitment declaration fee includes two certified copies, and mail copy payments are made by check or money order to the Salt Lake County Clerk.
Salt Lake County Elections and Voter Records
The Elections Division runs voter registration and elections for the county. It processes ballots, issues voter certificates, and handles registration updates such as address and party changes. For a person rebuilding their life after release, this is also the office to ask about restored voting rights.
Voter records are county clerk records, not court records. A question about whether you are registered, or how to update your registration, goes here rather than to the court.
The division also handles military and overseas voting, signature and address updates, and party affiliation changes. During an election, ballot processing and voter certificates run through this office, which is why it gets busy on a calendar that the court clerk does not share.
Passports and County Council Records
The Passport Division accepts passport applications by appointment and offers passport photos. It is a federal service delivered through the county office, so plan for the appointment and the required documents. Booking ahead matters here, since walk-in passport service is limited.
The Council Clerk side keeps the records of county government itself. That includes County Council agendas, minutes, audio, streaming, and correspondence. If you want to follow a county decision or pull a meeting record, the Council Clerk function is the source.
These two roles look unrelated, and they are. One serves a person planning travel, the other serves residents watching county government. Both sit under the same elected clerk, which is part of why the office covers such a wide range of public services.
County Clerk vs the Clerk of Court
The two clerks share a word and little else. The Salt Lake County Clerk is a county office for marriage, elections, and passports. The Clerk of Court is the state court record keeper for case files. The table sums up the split.
| Salt Lake County Clerk | Clerk of Court | |
|---|---|---|
| Handles | Marriage, elections, passports | Court case files |
| Records | Marriage licenses, council records | Civil, criminal, family, probate |
| Run By | Elected county clerk | Utah State Courts |
| Where | County Government Center | Matheson Courthouse |
For the court side, see the Salt Lake County Clerk of Court page.
A simple test sorts most requests. If the record ties to a court case number, it belongs with the Clerk of Court. If it is a marriage license, a voter record, a passport, or a council document, it belongs with the Salt Lake County Clerk. When the request is about a divorce, both can play a part, since the decree is a court record while an abstract may come from the county.
Requesting Salt Lake County Clerk Records
Marriage copies have their own request process through the Marriage Division. For other county clerk records, like council documents, a GRAMA request to the right office is the route. The county runs an online portal that helps route a request to the agency that holds the record.
A clear request names the office and describes the record. For the full open-records process and the request form, see Salt Lake County public records. Court files are different again, and those go through Utah Courts rather than a county request.
For a marriage copy, skip the general GRAMA route and use the Marriage Division's copy process, which is faster for that record. Save the GRAMA request for council documents, correspondence, and other administrative records the office holds.