El Paso County Public Records

Background investigation is not a new thing anymore these days. Whether the reason is for employment or marriage or just mere curiosity, anyone who wants to can now check and delve into the shady past of anyone in question or anyone they wish to establish a deeper relationship with. In this light, records are used. Fortunately in El Paso County, Texas, almost all records are public. Thanks to the Public Information Act now codified as the Texas Government Code. Through this statute, every member of the Lone Star State is given the right to check and access all registers that are kept in the state’s public archives.

If you are in El Paso County and you wish to obtain any public registers, you can do so by filing a request at the appropriate agency. Several agencies have been designated by the Texas government to keep track and manage certain records. Most of these records are subject to the Public Information Act which conveys they can be accessed by anyone from the general public. Records generated by certain private entities, additionally, are also subject to the same Act. However, it is very important to take note that only those private offices that are funded by the government or those that expend public funds are included in the Texas governmental bodies.

Albeit most records in El Paso County are public, there are certain records that are not covered by the Open Records Act or the Public Information Act. Judicial records are not at all public as well as law court proceedings. Should you need to obtain these noteworthy registers, petitioning the court in writing is a must. The court will then decide if you should be granted access or not. However, you can check with the decision of the Attorney General first if the record you filed a request for is indeed confidential or protected as it is the Open Records Division of the Attorney General which checks and sees that certain records are truly public as per the Texas Government Code.

If you need to request for vital records in El Paso County, the best agency to visit is the Texas Department of State Health Services. Birth and death records are available here as well as marriage and marriage dissolution or divorce indexes. Requests for such noteworthy registers must be addressed to such department’s Bureau of Vital Statistics. Nonetheless, marriage and divorce certificates are not issued by the same office. You have to procure them locally through the El Paso County Clerk’s Office. Both certificates of matrimonial union and marriage dissolution cost $20 each. Other public records such as those of arrests and criminal convictions are obtainable through the El Paso County Sheriffs’ Office and Division of Criminal Justice respectively. Criminal background check using such information requires a payment of $15 for a fingerprint-based search and a $10 for a name-based criminal check.

Procuring these public documents in the traditional manner is quite a meticulous process. It is also time-consuming since it requires you to do some paper works and wait for days to weeks to get a hold of the registers you filed an entreaty for. Through the modern marvel of the Internet, transactions such as records retrieval are made easier and speedier. Now, with online repositories, you can already procure any El Paso County public registers you need right away and even get to save money as they offer the same service for a lesser fee.

Public Records El Paso County

To place an order for any public document in El Paso County, these steps must be followed:

• – Secure an application form and fill it out with all the significant information asked.
• – For marriage and divorce decrees, you have to indicate the complete names of the husband and wife as well as the date and county where they tied the knot.
• – For death records, the complete name of the decedent must be provided including the date and county of birth, spouse’s name, parents’ name, and the social security number if known.
• – For arrest and criminal records, the full legal name of the subject including any known sobriquets, the last known address, and the social security number if available.