The City of Jacksonville, its departments and its independent agencies support the Florida "Government in the Sunshine" laws, designed to provide transparency and openness in government operations.

The Florida law on "Public Records" may be found in its entirety in Chapter 119 of the Florida Statutes.

Who may request public records?
"It is the policy of this state that all state, county, and municipal records are open for personal inspection and copying by any person. Providing access to public records is a duty of each agency." [Chapter 119.01 (1)]

What is a public record?
"'Public records' means all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, data processing software, or other material, regardless of the physical form, characteristics, or means of transmission, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by any agency." [Chapter 119.011 (12)] 

 How do I make a Request for Public Records?
You can remain anonymous when asking for public records and you do not have to put your request in writing or state why you want the record.

Here are some ways you can request a public record:

1. You can go in person to any government office and ask for a copy of a record. (If you do not care about remaining anonymous, it may be easier for you to fax a request and have the records mailed or e-mailed to you.)

2. You can fax your request to (904) 630-2391.

3.  You can call 630-CITY (904-630-2489) and ask for the records to be mailed to you, or you can file that request on the online system for 630-CITY. (If you use the online system, click here for step by step instructions on how to request the records.)

What if I have a question about the process or a problem with obtaining Public Records? 
The Director of Communications for the city is responsible for handling any questions or complaints about public records and will coordinate with the Ethics Office, Inspector General and Ethics Commission to obtain full compliance with Public Records laws. Contact the Director of Communications by e-mail or by phone at 630-1776.

Costs
Although requests for copies of an existing document(s) containing fewer than 10 pages are normally done without charge, the law allows local governments to recover the costs of extensive requests from the requestor. 

Instructions on how to request Public Records on the Online System. 
Go to "Request Service/Register complaint". Hit "Request Service" at the bottom. Then, under "Search by Category", scroll down to "Public Records". Under "Issue Description, click and highlight "Public Records Request". Under "Comments" you can type your request. Step 2 does not apply, because there is no location of the incident, but if you don't type something in the fields, you cannot get to Step 3! So under Step 2, "Location", type your address.  Step 3, list your name and address. (This is not the way to request the information if you want to remain anonymous.)  After finishing Step 3, hit "submit".  Print the final page for your records.
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