Kansas woman told birth certificate wasn’t enough to prove citizenship for passport

TSgt Larry Johnson You are quite correct that this story does not pass the smell test. They (the individual, the reporter, and possibly the State Department) appear to be leaving information out of the story.

Mr. Stewart, there is no such thing as a State Department Birth Certificate! A "Consular Report of Birth Abroad" IS NOT A Birth certificate; though it is proof of US Citizenship.
This will serve as ID in all the same capacities as a regular birth certificate. This is where the majority of misunderstandings come from.
Been through this before. For most purposes you need the following - an original birth certificate, a certified translation if birth certificate is not in English, and a certified/original copy of CRBA (Consular Report of Birth Abroad).

I am a foreign-born U.S. citizen (but born abroad to US citizen parents on an Air Force base). They wouldn't take my birth certificate, (which was issued by US Dept of State). Looking at the SSA site, US born US citizens can use birth certificate. I still call this crazy, since US Dept of State birth certificate would seem to be, you know, kinda authoritative - but that's me.