The School District of Pickens County is committed to transparency and providing records to the public in accordance with South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Chapter 4, Title 30, Code of Laws of South Carolina.

Under South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act (Section 30-4-20) the “public record” is defined as “all books, papers, maps, photographs, cards, tapes, recordings, or other documentary material regardless of physical form or characteristics prepared, owned, used, in the possession of, or retained by a public body.”

All requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) must be submitted in writing to the School District of Pickens County’s Chief Communications Officer. 

• Download FOIA Request Form - Each request must be submitted on this form

• South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act

• Public Official's Guide to Compliance with South Carolina's Freedom of Information Act

Describe your request as specifically as possible. If you are uncertain about which records contain the information you desire, provide a description of the type of information you are searching for, and every attempt will be made to locate the relevant records. A great deal of information about the school district is available on our web site, and this information may help you formulate your request.

The district has a practice of charging individuals or entities requesting information FOIA “the actual cost of searching for or making copies of records,” as permitted pursuant to S. C. Code Section 30-4-30(b).

A reasonable fee not to exceed the actual cost will be charged for the search, retrieval, and, when appropriate, redaction of records produced in response to a request for public records under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). Additionally, copies will be charged at a cost not to exceed the prevailing commercial rate for the producing of copies. In certain cases, particularly FOIA requests in which a large number of records or confidential information is requested, a deposit not exceeding 25% of the total estimated fee will be required prior to commencing the retrieval and production of records.

Reasonable efforts will be made to produce records at the lowest possible cost, and the following fee schedule will apply:

• Copying costs will be charged at a commercially reasonable rate of $0.10 per page, and, the fee for non-standard size documents, such as architectural plans or property plats, will be individually determined at the time of copying based on actual copying cost.

• Search, retrieval, and redaction costs of records will be charged at the prorated hourly salary of the lowest paid employee who, in the reasonable discretion of the custodian of the records, has the necessary skill and training to perform the search, retrieval, and, if appropriate, redaction. Records requests involving specialized, technical, or confidential information, or otherwise requiring redaction, will in many cases require an employee with a higher salary to perform the search, retrieval, and/or redaction. The fee rate, accordingly, will vary based on the nature of the records requested, depending on the necessary skill and training level necessary. However, the current minimum applicable fee rate is $20 per hour. Employee time will be billed based on 1/4 hour increments.

• The district may require a 25% deposit to begin compiling FOIA requests. The remaining balance must be paid prior to receiving requested records.

The fee schedule may vary from time to time as hourly wages, salaries, and commercially reasonable copying costs change.

Fees will not be charged for examination and review of documents to determine if the documents are subject to disclosure. Additionally, copying costs will not be charged for copies of records that are transmitted in electronic format, although if requested records are not already in electronic format, fees will be charged for staff time required to transfer the documents to electronic format.