Public Records & Fees
Recently, the City Council approved revisions to the City ordinance addressing fees associated with Police, Fire & Communications Records. These revisions update the fees associated with the production of documents relating to public safety agencies of the City and other departments.
| Record of Service |
Cost |
| Photos or audio (CD, USB, or download link) |
$30 |
| Paper copies of Photos (8x11) |
$15 |
| Copies of Police video recordings |
$30 |
| Other video |
$30 |
| Copy of an Accident report |
$6 |
| Copy of a Fire incident report |
$6 |
| Record search (per hour) |
$20 |
| Duplication, per page |
$0.20 |
Other Public Records
For records not listed above, city staff may need to spend time searching for, reviewing, and copying what you've requested. Here's how that's billed.
The first hour is always free. Requests that exceed one hour of staff time to fulfill will be completed according to the fees below.
What kind of request is this?
Personal or non-commercial use — Records requested by an individual, school, nonprofit researcher, or news outlet requesting records for personal, educational, research, or reporting purposes (not for profit).
Commercial use — Records that are requested to benefit a business, for profit, or as part of a trade. This also includes using the records to build or improve AI or machine-learning systems.
Costs by Request Type
| Staff Service |
Personal / Non-Commercial |
Commercial |
| Staff time to search for records |
$20/hour |
$50/hour |
| Staff time to review records (checking what can legally be released) |
$20/hour |
$100/hour |
| Copies, per page |
$0.20 |
$0.20 (or $50/hour if bulk duplication) |
A note on cost: These hourly rates are based on the actual cost of the staff time involved, discounted for personal and non-commercial requests.
Good to know
- Large requests may require a deposit. If your request is expected to cost more than $50, or if you have not paid a previous bill on time, the city may ask you to pay part of the cost upfront before staff begins the work.
- "Search" time covers staff looking through files and records, including reading page-by-page when needed, or to find what you asked for.
- "Review" time covers staff checking documents to determine what can be released and what is legally exempt (for example, information protected under state law).
More Information
Chapter 41 of the Code of Ordinances of Sioux Falls, South Dakota sets forth the fee schedule for public records requests. For the full text of the Ordinance, please search for Ordinance 54-26 on the Sioux Falls City Clerk's Records Online database.