Utah Free Public Records Directory

Utah, located in the western United States, was admitted to the U.S. on January 4, 1896, as the 45th state. It is ranked 13th in size, consisting of 84,899 sq. miles. Utah is one of the “Four Corners” states, where the corners of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico meet. It is bordered by Idaho in the north, Wyoming in the north and east, by Colorado in the east, by Arizona in the south, and by Nevada in the west. Utah along with Colorado and Wyoming are the only three states in the U.S. that have boundaries along latitude and longitude lines only.

Comprised of 29 counties, Utah has a population of 3,101,833 (2017 estimate) making it the 31st ranked state in population. Utah’s population is concentrated in two main areas, the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a population of 1,153,340 (2014 estimate), and Washington County in southern Utah, with over 160,000 residents. Salt Lake City, the capital, has a population of 190,884. Utah, behind Nevada, was the second fastest growing state in population at 23.8% between the 2000 and 2010 census.

A majority of Utah’s population (62%) are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS (Mormons). The Salt Lake Valley’s first permanent settlement was the arrival of the Latter-day Saints on July 24, 1847. The LDS had traveled into the Mexican Territory seeking a secluded area to safely practice its religion. Four days after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley, Brigham Young, the president of the church, designated the building site of the Salt Lake Temple, which became the center of Salt Lake City. The temple took 40 years to complete and still serves as Salt Lake City’s icon and centerpiece. Salt Lake City is the LDS Church’s world headquarters. ^[1]

Utah is known for its diverse terrain due to its location at the convergence of the Rocky Mountains, the Great Basin, and the Colorado Plateau. Its physical features range from arid deserts to thriving pine forests. The Wasatch Mountain Range, running down the middle of the State’s northern third, rises to heights of almost 12,000 feet above sea level. Utah’s ski resorts are known for their light, fluffy snow where it can snow one to three feet overnight during winter storms. The lowest and hottest spot in Utah is located in the southwestern part of the state. The dry weather is a result of lying in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada in California. The eastern half of the state lies in the rain shadow of the Wasatch Mountains. Utah can experience extreme temperatures with cold temperatures in the winter due to its elevation and very hot summers in its desert areas.

Utah is a major tourist destination for outdoor recreation. In addition to tourist activities, it is a center for transportation, education, information technology, and mining. In a 2012 national poll, Utah was deemed to be the “best state to live in” based on economic, lifestyle and health related factors. ^[2]

When you are ready to research Utah public records, you can scroll through the list of available records below. The list includes records related to property, records related to crime, records related to elections, and records related to births, deaths and marriages.

Abbreviation	UT, Ut.
Capital	Salt Lake City
Population	3,101,833 (2017 est.)
Area size	84,899 sq. mi
Demonym	Utahn
Primary languages spoken	English
Governor	Gary Herbert
Lieutenant Governor	Spencer Cox
U.S. Senators	Orrin Hatch, Mike Lee
U.S. House Delegation	4 Republicans
Time Zone	Mountain: UTC -7/-6

*The map and data in the table are from Wikipedia.

Browse by Public Record Category

There are two types of public records; 1) personal public records that document major life milestones such as birth certificates, death certificates, divorce records, and marriage records, etc.; and 2) government records that are made public such as property tax records, recorded land records, voter records, crime data, jail inmate records, and court records. ^[3] The Freedom of Information Act is a national law that releases government agency public records and makes it possible to view most public records. Utah’s Public Records Act (known as the “Government Records Access and Management Act) - Utah Code 63G-2 - briefly states: “(1) In enacting this act, the Legislature recognizes two constitutional rights: (a) the public's right of access to information concerning the conduct of the public's business; and (b) the right of privacy in relation to personal data gathered by governmental entities, and (2) The Legislature also recognizes a public policy interest in allowing a government to restrict access to certain records, as specified in this chapter, for the public good...^[4]

Since there are a multitude of records available, it can be difficult to know how or where to access them. When you are ready to start your search, you’ll find our Public Records Directory website easy to use since all of the records can be searched by federal, state, county, city, town or type of record. The links provided will connect you to the best website for the record search, provide details about the record, or provide contact information for those records without search capabilities.