On Monday the Sturgis, SD city finance office stated it will begin charging $600 for a copy of the rally’s vendor list. And while they have charged for the list in the past, previously it was only $208. Before that it only carried a $50 fee. City finance office Fay Bueno justified the huge increase by saying that the process is labor-intensive, requiring up to 72 hours to assemble the list that this year contained more than 700 vendors. Bueno went on to state that the vendors are fully aware that their company name, location at the rally and a list of their products are being sold by the city, but that the vendors’ email addresses are not included as part of the listing. And while we agree that the vendor list can be a valuable tool, justifying such a high cost may be prohibitive to many previously interested parties. There is no charge for law enforcement and government agencies.
