Hi,
Unfortunately, there is no easy way for you to get what you're
seeking. The information is available without charge and is public
record, but you'll have to go to each county individually to get it.
Unless you're clairvoyant, the only way I know of to find out who is
going to be married is to obtain marriage licenses or marriage license
applications. In Washington, there is a three-day waiting period
before the time a license is applied for and when the license is
issued. Once the license is issued, the couple can be married at any
time up to 57 days from then (that is, 60 days after the marriage
application). I have no way of knowing what the average waiting time
is between the time couples apply for the license and when they get
married (although it's obviously between 3 and 30 days). What I'm
getting at is that if you want to know who will be married two weeks
from now, you won't be able to get that information if the couple
files just three days ahead of the wedding.
Applications for marriage licenses are made at county auditors'
offices. Couples don't have to live in or be married in the same
county where they apply for a license, but that is the most common.
(I have known people who have gone to a different county to get a
license because they didn't want to be listed in the newspaper.) They
must be married within the state, however.
You can find general information about the application process on this
page:
How To Apply for a King County Marriage License
http://www.metrokc.gov/lars/marriage/
As I said, the licenses are public record, and they include the
addresses of both the bride and the groom. You can see a copy of a
marriage license application on the following link:
Marriage License Application
http://www.metrokc.gov/lars/marriage/mlapp.pdf
The one exception to the availability of addresses is that the
addresses are sealed for people who are the state's Address
Confidentiality Program. The program is primarily for people who are
victims of domestic violence.
To see the licenses, you'll have to go to the county auditor's office
of the county where the licenses are issued. Under the state's open
records law, you can look at the licenses and/or license applications
without charge, and you don't have to give a reason why you want to
look at the records. If you want a copy, the county can provide one
for what it determines to be a reasonable fee. Judging from the sites
I looked at, it is common to charge $1 for a regular copy, $3 for a
certified copy.
(Note: A few months ago the Associated Press sent reporters acting
anonymously to various courthouses in the state to request public
records to find out how they were treated. In many cases, the
reporters were asked why the wanted the information, even though the
law says anyone can get the records for any reason whatsoever. So you
may be asked, but your purpose for the records really is irrelevant as
far as the law is concerned, and you are entitled to review the
records.)
The law that guarantees your access to the marriage license
information can be found here:
RCW 26.04.170
http://search.leg.wa.gov/wslrcw/RCW%20%2026%20%20TITLE/RCW%20%2026%20.%2004%20%20CHAPTER/RCW%20%2026%20.%2004%20.170.htm
The full law on marriage licenses can be found using the following
link. As you can see, marriage license records are entirely a county
concern, not a state one.
RCW 26.04
http://search.leg.wa.gov/wslrcw/RCW%20%2026%20%20TITLE/RCW%20%2026%20.%2004%20%20CHAPTER/RCW%20%2026%20.%2004%20%20chapter.htm
You can find links and/or contact information for all the county
auditors' offices on this page:
Access Washington: How To Get a Marriage License
http://access.wa.gov/government/awmarriage.asp
I looked through web sites for all the larger counties, and of those I
viewed only Clark County (which includes Vancouver, Wash.) makes
marriage license applications available online. However, the online
information doesn't included addresses.
The Clark County marriage license information can be viewed on the
following page:
Search for Docs
http://auditor.co.clark.wa.us/auditor_new/index.cfm?fuseaction=displaysearch
If you just enter starting and ending dates, the site will list all of
the marriage licenses or applications, depending on what you choose in
the pull-down menu.
Marriage licenses also are listed in many of the newspapers in
Washington state (although I don't recall seeing them in the Seattle
Times, which I read regularly). However, the listings I've seen in
various papers don't list the addresses either (other than the city of
residence).
If there are any companies that compile the information you seek in a
form that is readily accessible, I wasn't able to find any.
I realize that you were hoping for an easier method. But since
marriage license applications are handled on a county-by-county basis
and often are not put in publicly accessible databases, the work needs
to be done in person.
I hope you find this information helpful.
Sincerely,
mvguy
Google search term: "washington state" "marriage licenses"
://www.google.com/search?q=%22washington+state%22+%22marriage+licenses%22&num=25&hl=es&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&start=25&sa=N
This article was based on following sites found through the Google
search above, review of the state government web site, and personal
knowledge from being a journalist in the state for several years. |
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