Question:
Dear Government George, where would I go to view vital records?
Answer:
The Department of Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk is located at12400 Imperial HighwayinNorwalk. The following will provide you with the procedure for viewing vital records. Certificates and indexes of birth, death and marriage records not exempt from public inspections may be examined at the Office of the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk between8 a.m.and4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays.
In addition to certificates on file, there are indexes of birth, death and marriages available for public inspection as follows: Births prior to 1905 and from 1964 to the present; Deaths from 1877 to the present; and Marriages from 1852 to the present. Records of confidential marriages performed pursuant to Family Code Section 500 are not available for public review. Certificates and indexes may be examined at no charge unless a deputy is requested search and/or retrieve more than five records.
Random searches of the indexes or the certificates are not allowed. An application is required for each record searched. Information sufficient to identify the requested record must be provided. If you are requesting a copy of a birth record of a child who has been adopted or had a legal name change, your written request should be sent to the State Department of Health Services, Office of Vital Records – M.S. 5103, PO Box 997410, Sacramento, CA 95899-7410, the telephone number is (916) 445-2684 . There is a $14 charge for each copy requested payable by check or money order to the office of Vital Records.