(A) Any person desiring to inspect or copy the public records of this city shall make a request for inspection at the office of the City Clerk during regular office hours, except during legal holidays. The official custodian, or the custodian acting under the authority of the official custodian, may require a request to inspect public records to be in writing, signed by the applicant and with the applicant's name printed legibly on the application. A written request to inspect public records may be presented by hand delivery, mail or via facsimile, if one is available.
(B) If the custodian determines that a person's request is in compliance with this chapter and the open records law, and the requested public records are immediately available, the custodian shall deliver the records for inspection. A person may inspect public records at the designated office of the city during the regular office hours, or in appropriate cases, by receiving copies of the records through the mail.
(C) If the public records are to be inspected at the offices of the city, suitable facilities shall be made available in the office of the City Clerk or in another office of the city as determined by the official custodian or custodian for the inspection. No person shall remove original copies of public records from the offices of the city without the written permission of the official custodian of the record. When public records are inspected at the city offices, the person inspecting the records shall have the right to make abstracts and memoranda of the public records and to obtain copies of all public records not exempt by the terms of § 34.12. When copies are requested, the custodian may require a written request and advance payment of the prescribed fee, including postage where appropriate. If the applicant desires copies of public records other than written records, the custodian of the records shall duplicate the records or permit the applicant to duplicate the records; however, the custodian shall ensure that such duplication will not damage or alter the original records.
(D) Nonexempt public records used for commercial purposes shall be available for copying in either standard electronic or standard hard copy format, as designated by the party requesting the records, where the city currently maintains the records in electronic format. Nonexempt public records used for noncommercial purposes shall be copied in standard hard copy format where the city currently maintains records in hard copy format. The city is not required to convert hard copy format records to electronic formats.
(E) The minimum standard format in paper form shall be not less than 8½ x 11 inches in at least one color on white paper, or for electronic format, in a flat file electronic American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) format. If the city maintains electronic public records in a format other than ASCII, and this format conforms to the requestor's requirements, the public record may be provided in this alternate electronic format for standard fees as specified by the city. Any request for a public record in a form other than the forms described in this section shall be considered a nonstandardized request.
(F) Upon proper request, the city shall mail copies of the public records to a person whose residence or principal place of business is located outside of the county after the person precisely describes the public records which are readily available and after the person pays in advance the prescribed fee and the cost of mailing.