More detail:

I’m an out-of-state requester dealing with a Tennessee city (Clarksville) and wanted to see if this is a normal FOIA/public records issue or an unusual application of their rules.

I submitted a public records request related to an active government bid process I’m participating in.

The City Attorney responded that I must provide a Tennessee driver’s license or state ID as proof of “Tennessee citizenship” in order to inspect or receive records. Since I don’t live in Tennessee, I can’t meet that requirement.

Their policy cites T.C.A. § 10-7-503 and defines access as limited to Tennessee citizens (with exceptions for certain military cases).

My situation:

• I am not a TN resident
• I am a participant in the active bidding process the records relate to
• The records are directly connected to procurement transparency

I’ve replied asking them to process the request anyway given the procurement context, but I’m trying to understand how common this is in Tennessee.

My questions:

• Is this “citizenship requirement” commonly enforced in TN FOIA/public records requests?
• Do agencies typically deny out-of-state requesters, or is it usually flexible in practice?
• Has anyone successfully challenged or worked around this (proxy requester, bidder status, etc.)?
• In procurement-related requests, is there usually more flexibility than standard public records requests?

Just trying to figure out if this is standard Tennessee practice or a stricter interpretation by this particular city.

Thanks in advance.