Centralia Residents Directory
The Centralia Residents Directory is a free tool to find public records kept by the City of Centralia and state offices. The City Clerk is the Public Records Officer for most city files. Police and municipal court files are kept by their own offices. Centralia sits in Lewis County, halfway between Seattle and Portland. The Centralia Residents Directory runs on the Washington Public Records Act. Residents can look up council minutes, city codes, ordinances, and police logs. Requests get a reply within five business days under state law. You can view records at no cost in City Hall.
Centralia Residents Directory Overview
Centralia uses a central portal called JustFOIA to track records requests. The Centralia Request for Public Records page explains how to file a request. You can submit online, by mail, or in person. The city follows Chapter 2.10 of the Centralia Municipal Code and RCW 42.56 for all non-court requests.
Court records sit at the Centralia Municipal Court. Police files live with the Centralia Police Department. General city files go to the city clerk. That three way split is standard for Washington cities. Each office keeps its own queue. You get faster results when you send each request to the right desk.
The screenshot above shows the Centralia public records request page. It is the main online entry to the Centralia Residents Directory.
Centralia City Clerk Records
The Centralia City Clerk is Kristan McConnell. The office sits on the second floor of City Hall at 118 W. Maple Street. Phone is 360-330-7670. The clerk keeps the city's ordinances, resolutions, and council minutes. The clerk also processes public records requests, runs the business license program, and handles bid openings.
The clerk is the Public Records Officer for Centralia. That designation comes from state law. The clerk does not handle police or court files. Those go to their own offices. The clerk will route misdirected requests but the extra step slows things down.
The city says requests must be for identifiable records. That means you need to describe the file well enough that staff can find it. A name, a date, or a case number all help. A request for everything about a person will likely be too broad.
This image shows the Centralia City Clerk page, where residents start most non-court searches in the Centralia Residents Directory.
Centralia Municipal Court and Police Records
Court records in Centralia are kept by the Centralia Municipal Court. Court files are not under the Public Records Act. They use General Rule 31 and GR 31.1 from the Washington State Courts. You must ask the court clerk for case files, not the city clerk. The court handles misdemeanors, traffic infractions, and parking cases that happen in Centralia city limits.
Police records come from the Centralia Police Department through its own portal. The police records unit handles reports, crash reports, and call logs. Some files stay closed while a case is active. Once the case closes, most of the file opens up to the public.
Note: Court files are covered by General Rule 31, not the Public Records Act, so you must request case files directly from the court clerk.
Centralia Residents Directory Fees
Centralia follows the state default fee schedule under RCW 42.56.120. Printed copies are $0.15 per page. Scans are $0.10. Electronic transfers are $0.10 per gigabyte. Viewing files at City Hall is free. The city does not charge staff time fees for standard requests.
The paper request form asks you to certify that the records will not be used for a commercial purpose. That rule comes from RCW 42.56.070(9). It blocks bulk harvesting of city files for resale.
Statewide Tools for the Centralia Residents Directory
Many Centralia files also show up in state databases. The Washington Courts Odyssey Portal lists cases for many local courts. The Washington State Digital Archives holds older Lewis County files, including early birth and death records. The Secretary of State CCFS portal lets you search business entities by name or UBI.
Vital records go to the Washington Department of Health. That office keeps birth and death certs from 1907. Marriage and divorce records are there from 1968 on. Only qualified applicants can get certified copies of birth and death certs under RCW 70.58A.560.
The WATCH tool from the Washington State Patrol lets you search statewide criminal conviction data. Each search costs $11. Results come back fast and cover Washington state courts only.
Legal Framework
The Centralia Residents Directory runs on RCW 42.56. The first section says the people of the state keep their sovereignty. The law orders agencies to open their files. The clerk must reply to a request within five business days. The reply can be the file, an estimate, a request for more detail, or a denial.
If the city denies a file, the denial must cite a specific exemption. A resident can ask a court to review the denial. The city has the burden of proof. Courts read the Public Records Act in favor of disclosure. That makes the Centralia Residents Directory strong.
Some files are exempt. RCW 42.56.240 lists them. The list covers medical data, some investigative files, and a few employee records. Redactions must be narrow. The city must give you the rest of the file with the exempt parts blacked out.
Centralia Residents Directory Channels
Here are the main desks for the Centralia Residents Directory. Each one takes its own type of file.
- Centralia City Clerk at 118 W. Maple Street
- Centralia Police Department records unit
- Centralia Municipal Court clerk
- Lewis County Superior Court for felony and family law cases
- Washington State Archives for older files
The Washington Public Records Act sets the same five day rule for all of them. If a desk does not reply, call the office and ask for status.
More Washington Counties
Centralia is in Lewis County. For county level records from the ten most populous counties on this site, browse the full counties list.