Sioux Falls Contractor License Bond
What it is & who requires it
Contractors licensed by Sioux Falls in any of its ten bonded trade classes — electrical contractors, Class B electricians, sign wiring contractors and fire alarm contractors; mechanical, refrigeration and fireplace contractors; and master plumbers, manufactured and mobile home plumbing installation contractors and landscape irrigation contractors. Each class is a separate license with its own examination and holding one does not cover another. For the electrical classes the city checks your state credential first: an applicant must already hold a current South Dakota electrical license of the same type before applying for the city examination, so the two stack rather than substitute. Journeyman and apprentice credentials are registered rather than bonded. Note that Sioux Falls does not license commercial building contractors at all, so there is no commercial building contractor bond to buy here.
Obligee: City of Sioux Falls (Chief Building Services Official; Building Services). Citation: Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances § 150.232 (Bond required — electrical, Class B, sign wiring and fire alarm contractors); § 150.038 (Bond required — mechanical, refrigeration and fireplace contractors); § 150.307 (Bond required — master plumbers, manufactured and mobile home plumbing installation contractors and landscape irrigation contractors); § 150.226 (Bond required — sign wiring); § 110.005 (Approval of bonds); § 150.230 (Examinations); § 150.229 (License term and renewal); Ord. 82-11, passed 10-17-2011; Ord. 75-14, passed 10-14-2014.
Bond amount
The required bond amount is $10,000.
How to get it
This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
Request a bond quote
Tell us about the bond and the project. A licensed producer follows up — these bonds are individually underwritten, so they are not issued instantly.
Term & renewal
Term: Continuous — the ordinance requires a continuous bond maintained for the life of the license, and the surety’s aggregate liability is capped at the penal sum however many years it runs or claims are made.
Renewal: Biennial, in even years, 60 days after the renewal date set by the State Electrical Commission for the electrical classes; a license unrenewed for more than a year requires re-examination.
Filing
Delivered to the chief building services official and maintained continuously as a condition of the license, in a form approved by the city, with the contractor as principal and the city as obligee — for the city’s benefit and expressly for the benefit of consumers dealing with the contractor. The ordinance leaves no substitute open: the bond must be written by a corporate surety authorized to transact business in South Dakota, and the sum is stated flatly, so what you file is not negotiated. Three features are worth planning around. General liability insurance is a separate requirement carried alongside the bond rather than in place of it. The bond is expressly in addition to all other license bonds required by any political subdivision or government agency, so a contractor working more than one South Dakota city should expect to carry more than one. And the surety’s exposure is capped: the aggregate liability cannot exceed the penal sum no matter how many claims are made or how many years the bond stays in force, and a later revision of the amount is not cumulative.
Source
Verified against the obligee source (last checked 2026-09-01).
Related South Dakota bonds
Frequently asked questions
- Who requires the Sioux Falls Contractor License Bond?
- It’s required by City of Sioux Falls (Chief Building Services Official; Building Services) (Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances § 150.232 (Bond required — electrical, Class B, sign wiring and fire alarm contractors); § 150.038 (Bond required — mechanical, refrigeration and fireplace contractors); § 150.307 (Bond required — master plumbers, manufactured and mobile home plumbing installation contractors and landscape irrigation contractors); § 150.226 (Bond required — sign wiring); § 110.005 (Approval of bonds); § 150.230 (Examinations); § 150.229 (License term and renewal); Ord. 82-11, passed 10-17-2011; Ord. 75-14, passed 10-14-2014). Contractors licensed by Sioux Falls in any of its ten bonded trade classes — electrical contractors, Class B electricians, sign wiring contractors and fire alarm contractors; mechanical, refrigeration and fireplace contractors; and master plumbers, manufactured and mobile home plumbing installation contractors and landscape irrigation contractors. Each class is a separate license with its own examination and holding one does not cover another. For the electrical classes the city checks your state credential first: an applicant must already hold a current South Dakota electrical license of the same type before applying for the city examination, so the two stack rather than substitute. Journeyman and apprentice credentials are registered rather than bonded. Note that Sioux Falls does not license commercial building contractors at all, so there is no commercial building contractor bond to buy here.
- How much is the Sioux Falls Contractor License Bond?
- The bond amount is $10,000.
- How do I get the Sioux Falls Contractor License Bond?
- This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
- What is the term?
- Continuous — the ordinance requires a continuous bond maintained for the life of the license, and the surety’s aggregate liability is capped at the penal sum however many years it runs or claims are made. Renewal: Biennial, in even years, 60 days after the renewal date set by the State Electrical Commission for the electrical classes; a license unrenewed for more than a year requires re-examination.
- Is this bond insurance for me?
- No. It protects the obligee and the public — not you. If a valid claim is paid, you repay the surety.
- How is this requirement verified?
- We verify it against the obligee’s primary source (last checked 2026-09-01); the source link is on this page.
