Flagstaff, Arizona (3TV/CBS 5) – Police body camera footage plays an important role in investigations, and until recently anyone could request it for free. But a new Arizona law that went into effect last October allows cities to implement their own hourly fees for people to obtain body camera footage.
Flagstaff police officers were among the first in the state to wear body cameras nearly a decade ago. He's been giving people free footage for years, but things could change quickly. “When we look at fees with the City of Flagstaff, we take into account the cost of collection and we also take into account the cost of serving our customers,” said Rick Tadder, Director of Management Services.
The new law allows local governments in the state to charge up to $46 per hour for publicly requesting body camera footage.
The City of Flagstaff is considering implementing a maximum fee and held its first public forum on the topic during Tuesday's City Council meeting. “We would like to seek recovery of the $46 fee for each hour of edited video, as required by state law,” Flagstaff Police Chief Dan Musselman said in a statement.
From July 2022 to July 2023, the Flagstaff Police Department received 136 requests for body camera footage, but it took more than 200 hours just to review, not including editing and download time. The new fees will help offset the cost of video requests. $46 only applies if the requested video is his 1 hour. The smaller the video, the cheaper the price.
This new law also impacts Coconino County. Sheriff's body camera footage used to cost $85 an hour, but regulators just approved a rate reduction to comply with the new law.
However, not everyone supports these fees. Chris Klein, president of the Arizona Media Association, said he understands it takes time and resources, but an hourly rate is not appropriate. “If it's structured in such a way that it quickly runs out of funding and costs, you start to question whether these fees are the reason why someone can't access public footage.”
But after some debate, the Flagstaff City Council voted to move forward and charge people the maximum rate. The City Council is expected to formally pass the fee increase in early February, and if approved, the fee would be introduced in March.
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