875—1.12(22,91) Request for access to records.
	1.12(1) Filing a request. A request for access to a record may be sent to the division at 150 Des Moines Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319, or submitted at iowaopenrecords.nextrequest.com. A request for access may be sent via facsimile to (515)281-7995 or may be delivered to the division’s office at 150 Des Moines Street, Des Moines, Iowa. If a request for access to a record is misdirected, division personnel will promptly forward the request to the appropriate person within the division.
	1.12(2) Office hours. Open records shall be made available during all customary office hours, which are 8 a.m.	to 4:30 p.m.	daily, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.
	1.12(3) Request for access. A request for access to open records shall identify the particular record sought by name or description in order to facilitate the location of the record. Written requests shall include the name, address, and telephone number of the person requesting the information. A person shall not be required to give a reason for requesting an open record.
	1.12(4) Response to request. The response to a request for a single, open record shall generally be immediate. If the size or nature of the request requires time for compliance, the custodian shall comply with the request as soon as feasible. Examples of situations where a request may be delayed include, but are not limited to, the following:
	a. 	Searching for, collecting, and copying a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records included in a single request, especially if both confidential and open records are included.
	b. 	Retrieving a record from archival storage.
	c. 	Any of the purposes authorized by Iowa Code subsections 22.8(4) and 22.10(4).
	d. 	Specialized reproduction of records such as but not limited to videotapes and audiotapes.
The custodian may deny access to the record by a member of the public only on the grounds that a denial is warranted under Iowa Code subsections 22.8(4) and 22.10(4), or that the record is a confidential record, or that disclosure is prohibited by a court order. Access by a member of the public to a confidential record is limited by law and may generally be provided only in accordance with the provisions of rule 875—1.13(22,91) and other applicable provisions of law.
	1.12(5) Security of record. No requester may, without permission from the custodian, search or remove any record, nor may a requester reorganize or damage division records. Examination and copying of division records shall be supervised by the custodian.
	1.12(6) Copying. A reasonable number of copies of an open record may be made in the division’s office. If appropriate equipment is not available in the division office where an open record is kept, the custodian shall permit its examination in that office and shall arrange for copies to be made. The division shall not copy materials where to do so may constitute a violation of law.
	1.12(7) Fees.
	a. 	When charged. The division may charge fees in connection with the examination or copying of records. To the extent permitted by applicable provisions of law, the payment of fees may be waived when the imposition of fees is inequitable or when a waiver is in the public interest.
	b. 	Copying and postage costs. Price schedules for published materials and for photocopies of records supplied by the division shall be available in division offices. Copies of records may be made for members of the public on division photocopy machines or from electronic storage systems at the posted cost. Actual costs of shipping may also be charged to the requester.
	c. 	Supervisory fee. An hourly fee may be charged for actual division expenses in searching for and supervising the examination and copying of requested records if time required is in excess of 15 minutes. The fee shall be based upon the pay scale of the employee involved and other actual costs incurred. The custodian shall make available in division offices the hourly fees to be charged.
	d. 	Payment.
	(1)	The custodian may require a requester to make an advance payment to cover all or part of the estimated fee.
	(2)	When a requester has previously failed to pay a fee chargeable under this subrule, the custodian may require payment in full of any amount previously due and advance payment of the full amount of an estimated fee chargeable under this subrule before the custodian processes a new request from that requester.
[ARC 4639C, IAB 8/28/19, effective 10/2/19; ARC 6986C, IAB 4/19/23, effective 5/24/23]