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Direct answer
For Salt Lake County public records, use GRAMA for records held by a county agency and direct the request to that agency. For deeds, liens, plats and related property records, begin with the Recorder and its Data Services search instead.
Salt Lake County makes the custodian choice part of the request
Salt Lake County Records Management explicitly says that each county agency stores its own records. The online GRAMA portal is therefore a routing system, not one consolidated county database. Before submitting a request, identify the department that created or maintains the material and describe the record in terms that department can recognize.
Property research is the main reason not to default to GRAMA. The Recorder is the designated custodian for real-estate transactions, liens, mining records and subdivision plats. Its Data Services tools can answer many recorded-document questions without asking a separate agency to perform a custom search. This separation also prevents a Recorder property hit from being presented as though it answered an unrelated agency-record request.
Pick the Salt Lake County access method by what you know
Department record
You know which county agency created the file
Use GRAMA and name the agency, record type, subject and useful date range in the request.
Property record
You have an address or parcel number
Start in Recorder Data Services and review the free recorded-document list before buying broader access.
Recorded instrument
You know the transaction family
Use the Recorder for liens, subdivision plats and other real-estate instruments instead of treating them as generic county correspondence.
Salt Lake County GRAMA and Recorder details worth keeping separate
| Question | Official rule or feature | Practical effect |
|---|---|---|
| Written GRAMA response | Generally within ten business days; extensions can apply | A response deadline is not the same as guaranteed final production of every document |
| Agency research time | First thirty minutes free, then staff time may be charged | A narrow request can reduce avoidable research cost |
| Recorder Data Services | Free document-list search plus paid expanded access | Use the free list to confirm the property and document trail before paying for deeper retrieval |
Keep a Salt Lake County search from drifting between systems
1
Identify the owning officeSeparate agency files from Recorder-maintained property records.2
Use the free index where one existsFor property research, test the address or parcel number in Data Services first.3
Write GRAMA around an identifiable recordFor agency material, include the office, record type, subject and a bounded period.4
Save the request or document referenceKeep the portal number or recorded-document identifier so the search can be reproduced without starting over.