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Open Records Request

The Kansas Open Records Act(PDF, 17KB) (KORA) grants you the right to inspect and obtain copies of public records created or maintained by public agencies in Kansas. The Open Records Act, K.S.A. 45-215, et seq., as amended, declares that it is the public policy of Kansas that “public records shall be open for inspection by any person.”

Public records are defined as “any recorded information, regardless of form or characteristics, which is made, maintained or kept by or is in the possession of any public agency.” The Unified Government Clerk’s office is classified as a public agency for the purposes of this Act.

You might be looking for a copy of the accident report for your insurance, a copy of your driving record, or public meeting notes. While obtaining records can seem overwhelming, by following the steps below we can get you to the right place.

Public Records

General request for records, including court documents, can be obtained online or by mail in accordance Kansas Open Records Act(PDF, 17KB) (KORA) through the Unified Government Clerk's Office.

Learn how to request public records and start the process.

Public Records Search

Video Requests

The Kansas City, Kansas City Police Department understand the importance of incident recordings for victims, families and the public.

In general, the Kansas Open Records Act applies to requests for body worn or in-vehicle camera recordings, release of which will be subject to KSA 45-221 and other exceptions.

Step 1.Information to Understand

If the video is available and subject to release a fee will be applied.
If redaction is required, a redaction fee will be applied.
All fees must be paid by the requester in advance.
If a recording will not be released per KSA 45-221 or other exceptions, the requester will be notified, and no fee will be collected.
Requests for recordings are made through the Unified Governments Clerk's Office.

Step 2.Know Special Rules for Release

If not otherwise available for release, the Kansas City Kansas Police Department will allow the following individuals to listen to a requested audio recording or to view a requested video recording within 20 days of making the request. For the purposes of this policy, a “subject” of a recording shall be a person whose image or voice is in the recording.

A person who is the subject of a recording.
A parent or legal guardian of a person under 18 who is a subject of the recording.
An attorney for a person described above.
An heir at law, an executor or administrator of a decedent, when the decedent is the subject of a recording.
When disclosing the recording, only those portions of the recording that contain the image or voice of the person shall be disclosed.
Police Department personnel will be present at all times during the viewing.
The requester shall not in any manner record or copy the video being viewed.