GovSalaries won't take your name down because you ask. Its FAQ says it does not remove public records, because that would misrepresent the data the government released. There is one exception: if the government released your name or other information by mistake, GovSalaries asks for an official affidavit with proof from the agency, and says it will work to expeditiously redact the data points that are not public record. So a removal starts with the agency that released your pay record, not with GovSalaries.
GovSalaries is a government payroll transparency site. Its home page says it holds more than 150 million salary records from over 60,000 sources, and that the data usually includes name, surname, monthly wage, annual wage and employer statistics. It lists payrolls for school districts, cities, counties, state and federal employers, universities, police and fire departments, hospitals and libraries, so if a public body pays you, your record may be there. Its FAQ says the records are compensation records that government entities released as public records under Freedom of Information Act and public record laws.
Checked against GovSalaries' FAQ and contact page, its privacy policy, its cookie policy and its home page on October 26, 2026. None of those pages shows a date, and the site's /about and /terms addresses returned "404 Not Found". We also read Transparent California's FAQ and California's data broker registry. We read the pages; we did not search for anyone or submit anything.
What GovSalaries will and won't do
- It won't remove a public record. The FAQ says removal would misrepresent the data the government released, and could cause suspicion of wrongdoing by the government if some employees were missing from the records.
- It will redact a mistaken release. If the government released a name or other information that should not have been released into the public domain, the FAQ asks for an official affidavit with proof from the appropriate government agency or entity. GovSalaries says it will then work to expeditiously redact the data points deemed not public record.
- Withheld names are the agency's call. The FAQ says some names are exempt from public records disclosure, and gives undercover officers, military and other positions that need confidentiality as examples. It says this is decided at the government level before the records are released, and that GovSalaries has no control over it.
- There is no opt-out form. The contact page lists two email addresses, and the privacy policy covers log files, cookies and Google ads. None of the pages we read describes a deletion request, state privacy rights or a Do Not Sell option.
Step 1: start with the agency that released the record
GovSalaries acts only on the agency's word, so the agency is where a removal starts. That is usually your employer: the school district, city, county, department or university that pays you.
- Ask the agency's public records office, or HR, whether your name and pay were released, and for which years.
- Ask whether your position, or your situation, qualifies for withholding under your state's public records law. GovSalaries' own FAQ gives undercover officers and military as examples of names that are exempt.
- If the agency agrees your name or another detail should not have been released, ask it for the official affidavit with proof that GovSalaries' FAQ asks for. Explain that it is for a payroll website that will only redact on the agency's word.
What can be withheld depends on your state's law. As one example, Transparent California's FAQ says California's Public Records Act treats public employee names, salary and pension information as public record, and that the California Supreme Court has held local agency employees have no reasonable expectation of privacy in their name, salary and dates of employment. That site says that if you think you have a case for removing your name, you should take it up with the agency that reported the data, and that it removes names only when an agency tells it to, for redaction reasons the law allows. GovSalaries' FAQ describes the same arrangement: the agency decides.
Step 2: send GovSalaries the agency's affidavit
- Copy the address of every GovSalaries page that shows your record, for every year and employer listed.
- Email GovSalaries. Its contact page lists govsalariescom@outlook.com for "Partnership and other questions" and admin@govsalaries.com for "Technical problems", and asks you to read the FAQ before writing. It doesn't say which address handles removal requests; "other questions" is the closer fit.
- Attach the agency's affidavit, list each page address, and name the data point you want redacted: your name, or a specific detail.
A suggested wording:
To: govsalariescom@outlook.com
Subject: Redaction request with agency affidavit
[Agency name] released my [name / other detail] by mistake, and it should not have been released into the public domain. The agency's official affidavit with proof is attached.
Pages that show it: [links]
Data point to redact: [name / detail]
Please confirm when the redaction is done.
What a removal covers
- Only what the agency confirms. The FAQ says GovSalaries will redact the data points deemed not public record. A record that is still public stays up.
- Only GovSalaries. The same payroll release can be published elsewhere. OpenPayrolls, for one, has a removal policy worded almost the same way.
- Not the agency's release. GovSalaries says it is not affiliated with any government entity. A redaction changes its page, not the records the agency released.
How long does it take?
The FAQ says GovSalaries will work "expeditiously" once it has the affidavit, but gives no timeframe. How long the agency takes is up to the agency.
If it doesn't work
- If the record is wrong, not just unwanted. GovSalaries says it can't guarantee its information is 100% accurate or complete, but it describes no correction process. Ask the agency whether it released the figure that way, and send GovSalaries the agency's written answer with the page link.
- Follow up in writing. Keep a dated copy of your email and the affidavit. If one address doesn't answer, try the other one on the contact page.
- Clear the old search result. Once a page changes, Google may still show the old version for a while; see how to remove your home address from Google search results for Google's refresh tool.
GovSalaries isn't one of the sites in Defynta's free scan, and Defynta doesn't file requests with it: this one is do-it-yourself.
Who runs GovSalaries. None of the pages we read names a company or gives a postal address; the contact page gives only the two email addresses. The footer says GovSalaries is not affiliated with any government entity and is not a consumer reporting agency under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and that it prohibits using the site to make decisions about employment, consumer credit, insurance or tenant screening. We did not find GovSalaries on California's data broker registry (searched October 26, 2026), so the state's DROP tool, which sends requests to registered brokers, is not a route here.
Related pages
- OpenPayrolls, another public payroll site that doesn't remove records
- VoterRecords.com, public voter files, where full removal needs an exemption
- BlockShopper, property records, with exceptions for police and public safety workers
- Where data brokers get your information
- How to remove your home address from Google search results
Full list: the master opt-out guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can I remove my name from GovSalaries?
Not on request. GovSalaries' FAQ says it does not remove public records. It will redact a name or other detail only if the government released it by mistake and you send an official affidavit with proof from the agency.
Why are some names redacted and mine isn't?
The FAQ says certain names are exempt from public records disclosure, such as undercover officers and military, and that this is decided at the government level before the records are released. Ask your agency whether your position qualifies.
Where does GovSalaries get my salary?
From the government. Its FAQ says the records are compensation records released by government entities as public records under Freedom of Information Act and public record laws.
Will a privacy law request work?
The GovSalaries pages we read describe no deletion request, state privacy rights or Do Not Sell option. The only exception they describe is the agency affidavit.
Does it cost anything?
None of the pages we read mention a fee.
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