Requesting Records

Bonney Lake public records requests are processed in accordance with RCW Chapter 42.56, the Public Records Act and General Rule 31.

The City policies and procedures for public records requests that are not Court records are Administrative Policy & Procedure for Disclosure of Public Records.

What To Expect

Submit a Request

Submit a request form from above or send by postal mail, email, or in-person.

Police Records City Records Court Records
Bonney Lake Police
18421 Veterans Memorial Dr E
Bonney Lake, WA 98391
Justice & Municipal Center
9002 Main St. E., Ste 300
Bonney Lake, WA 98391
Justice & Municipal Center
Attn: Municipal Court
9002 Main St. E., Ste 100
Bonney Lake, WA 98391
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Agency Receives Request

If a disclosure request is received during normal business hours, the City will provide a response by the 5th business day after receipt. If the request is received when City offices are closed, the 5-business day response period will start on the next occurring business day. Within 5-business days of the receipt by the City of the request for disclosure, the Public Records Officer or designee shall:

(1) Provide the record, or the portion of the record(s) subject to disclosure, after the payment of applicable fees; or
(2) Acknowledge the City's receipt of the request, accompanied by an estimate of time necessary for further response; or
(3) Deny the request accompanied by an explanation of the basis of denial; or
(4) Request a deposit for the records requested along with an estimate of time necessary to complete the request; or
(5) Ask for clarification of the request for records.

The City will work to expedite a response to your disclosure request. Requests will generally be handled in the order received. However, the City may handle simple requests first based on our best estimate of how to most expeditiously handle the total number of current requests.

Installments

If it is determined that a request may take a significant amount of time or potentially have a high volume of results, the City may choose to release records in installments over time. The agency will provide an estimate of time for any anticipated installment.

The Public Records Officer may require the requester to deposit a sum equal to 10% of the estimated cost prior to duplication of the records. In the event that a deposit is required, the City will notify the requester of the necessity of the deposit. If the actual duplication and deposit fees are less than the amount deposited by the requester, the City will return the sum in excess of the actual amount to the requester. 

Exemptions

The Public Records Act and General Rule 31 provides several types of documents, or information within documents, that are exempt from public inspection and copying. In addition, documents are exempt from disclosure if any “other statute” exempts or prohibits disclosure. The City will include an exemption log that also shows what pages have redactions and what exemption code was used. The explanation of the exemption code is in the pages following the log.

Emails

Emails that have no redactions will be provided as a PST file. This format is used for outlook emails. There are several free PST viewer software programs that can be downloaded from the internet in order to view these emails without having an outlook account. Any emails that require redactions will be transferred to a PDF file. If a record has both non redacted and redacted responsive emails, there will be both a PST file for the non redacted emails and a PDF file for the redacted emails.

Vacated And Sealed Records

Washington State law allows for the vacation of some misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor convictions. The vacation of a conviction releases the person convicted from all penalties resulting from the conviction. For more information, please see Vacate or Seal a Conviction.

Release

Responsive records will be released as available. If fees are applicable, payment is required before release of records.

Closing

When the agency has completed the request, it will provide a closing letter.

What You Should Provide

We ask that you describe your record request with as much subject matter specificity as possible to assist us in identifying the records you seek. Please include as many descriptive terms and identifiers as possible.

If applicable, include:

  • Type of Records
  • A Date or Date Range
  • Full Names
  • Birth Dates
  • Full Addresses or Parcel Numbers
  • Report or Reference Numbers

This will help us to identify the records you seek, reduce search time, and facilitate a faster agency response.

*Note: A request for “any and all” records may result in voluminous quantity of records you may not be interested in obtaining and will require more time for searching, identifying, and reviewing. If you have a specific type of record you are interested in, or what records you would like prioritized, please indicate this in your request.

Fees
Fees for copies, scanning, postage, delivery, electronic records, and other miscellaneous fees are in the Bonney Lake Fee Schedule. Fees can be combined to the extent that more than one type of charge applies to copies produced in response to a particular request. 

Record Type                               Cost                               
Inspect records in person Free
Download records from public websites Free
Printed paper copies of electronic records            $0.15 per page
Photocopies of paper records $0.15 per page
Scanning paper records into electronic format $0.10 per page
Provided digital storage media or device (e.g., CD, DVD, thumb drive, etc.) Actual cost of supplies
Mailing materials, postage, and delivery charges Actual cost of supplies
Sending electronic records by record count $0.05 for every four (4) electronic file 
Sending electronic records by file size $0.10 per gigabyte 
Body Worn Camera or In-Car Camera video $52.00 per hour 
Commonly Requested Records & Information
Record or Information Responsible Agency/Department & Contacts
As-Built Plans/Drawings, Maps Bonney Lake Public Services – GIS
Bids & City Projects Bonney Lake Current City Projects and Bids
Birth/Death Certificate Washington State Department of Health       
360-236-4300
or
Tacoma-Pierce County Department of Health
253-798-6418
Board & Commission Meetings Bonney Lake Boards & Commissions Page
Budgets, Financial Reports Bonney Lake City Budget Page
Building Permits, Plans,
Certificates of Occupancy
(inside City limits)
Bonney Lake Public Services - Permit Center 

For parcels located in unincorporated Pierce County (outside city limits) see Pierce County Planning & Land Services, below.
Business Licenses WA State Business License Service
800-451-7985
Contracts & Agreements Bonney Lake Interlocal Agreements Page
City Council Meetings Bonney Lake City Council Meeting Page
Correspondence (City) Bonney Lake City Clerk's Office
Court Records Bonney Lake Municipal Court Records Request Page          
Divorce Decrees Pierce County Auditor       
253-798-7427
Municipal Code/Laws/
Regulations
Bonney Lake Ordinances and Resolution Page
or Code Publishing Page 
Ordinances & Resolutions Bonney Lake  Ordinances & Resolutions Page            
Property Information,
Taxes, Sales 
Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer
253-798-6111
Pierce County Building Permits,
Plans, Certificate of Occupancy
Pierce County Planning and Land Services
253-798-7210
Pierce County 9-1-1  South Sound 9-1-1 - Dispatch Logs & Recordings
253-798-4721
Pierce County Sheriff Pierce County Sheriff
253-798-7530
Recorded Documents  Pierce County Auditor's Office
253-798-7427
Utility Billing Bonney Lake Utilities Billing
Vehicle Registration &
Driver’s Licenses
Washington State Department of Licensing
360-902-3770
Voter Registration & Elections Pierce County - Auditor
253-798-7427
Zoning Records Bonney Lake Zoning Page