(a) In the event that the space at the courthouse is inadequate for the clerk's office and the things belonging thereto, the clerk, in writing, may request the governing authority of the county to move his or her office to some other designated place in the county. In his or her request, the clerk shall state the inadequacy which exists. The governing authority is authorized to comply with the request and may designate another place as the office of the clerk. Such place must be owned by the county or a body politic and shall not be more than 500 feet from the courthouse at their nearest points. The judge of the superior court of the circuit in which the county is located or the chief judge in those circuits having more than one judge must give written consent before the clerk shall be authorized to move his or her office to such place.

(b) In the event that space at the courthouse or other place where the office of the clerk is located is inadequate to ensure the safe storage of records, the clerk, after obtaining written permission from the governing authority of the county and from the superior court judge of the circuit in which the county is located or the chief judge in those circuits having more than one judge, may cause the records to be stored at a data storage and retrieval facility within the State of Georgia. The clerk shall give public notice of the place of storage by posting notice at the courthouse. If documents are stored outside the county where the documents were created, the government entity shall:

(1) Bear all costs of transporting such documents back to the county of origin for purposes of responding to requests under Article 4 of Chapter 18 of Title 50, relating to inspections of public records; and

(2) Provide by contract for:

(A) Specific retrieval times in which documents requested shall be delivered; and

(B) Payment of additional fees by the person requesting the document from the clerk for expedited service.

(c)(1) Subject to the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subsection, in a county where the county site is located in an unincorporated area of the county and the county governing authority has constructed one or more permanent satellite courthouses within the county and has further designated each such structure as a courthouse annex or has otherwise established each such structure as an additional courthouse to the courthouse located at the county site, the clerk of superior court shall be authorized to maintain his or her offices and all things belonging thereto including the permanent records at one of the additional courthouse locations or at the courthouse at the county site. The clerk of superior court may, but is not required to, maintain a satellite office at an additional courthouse which is not the location of the clerk of superior court's main office where the permanent records are kept.

(2) The judge of the superior court of the circuit in which the county is located, or the chief judge if the county is a part of a circuit having more than one judge, must give written consent for the relocation or additional office, or both, and the county governing authority shall provide the necessary office space at the alternate or additional location, or both.

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code section, county documents, as defined in subsection (c) of Code Section 36-9-5, shall be stored only in accordance with the provisions of Code Section 36-9-5.