Butler County Clerk of Courts Office Mary’s Commitment to Public Service and Professionalism Amessage to fellow Republicans A lot has happened since | was honored by the appointment to Clerk of Courts by the Butler County Republican Party. My first few weeks have been exciting, encouraging and certainly eye opening. Long time communication concerns within the office and with other county offices are being improved, and budget issues are now being addressed. There are terrific employees working in the Clerk of Courts office, and | believe that we are adjusting weli to the changes and are excited about our future. We are building a team that will be the envy of every Clerk of Courts office in Ohio. Budget Issues and Funding Concerns Understand first that | believe in transparency, and the Office of the Clerk of Courts will be as open book ta the public as the law will allow. Soon after arriving in office, it came to my atten- tion that a significant portion of the Clerk's staff was being paid erroneously from the Title fund. The new discovery goes beyond the questions surrounding stationary, envelopes and pens. | brought my concerns to the Prosecutor who deferred to the State Auditor. The State Auditor indicated they had not reviewed the labor aliocations in the Clerk's office for several years, but would begin reviewing the allocations over the next few weeks. As you will see from the chart on the reverse side of this page, by shifting expenses to the Title Fund, the Clerk of Courts’ budget escaped cuts for many years unlike most county offices that have been laying off employees and cutting services, Correcting the mismanaged funds added anew burden on top of an already difficult budget scenario, The decision | faced was to con- tinue paying the employees inappropriately and to continue excessive spending; or to comply with state law and bring costs in line. Ultimately, five of the employees being paid incorrectly were let go. Accountability and Transparency Some tough decisions lie ahead. | did not create this issue, but | am committed to restoring compliance with the Ohio Revised Code. | am up to the task of restoring budget order, and it will bedone. No officeholder enjoys these types of budget issues, but this is the situation | inher- ited, and | have a job to do. The good news is this: cur office is becoming more efficient while maintaining good public service, We are streamlining our budget and saving taxpayer dollars while improving communi cations and becoming even more user friendly. In the final analysis, it is alt about accountability, service and spending taxpayer dollars wisely. On these points, | assure you that our office will be second to none.History of the Clerk of Courts Office Budget {includes all funds utilized by Clerk) Analysis: Clerk of Courts’ Budget saamaco seaos00 a seem s00 7900 s24a000 Tough Budget Times Cal! For Tough Budget Measures As you can see from the chart, | inherited an office that spent at unprecedented levels ata time when other officeholders were forced to fay off employees and reduce services to cut their budgets. Jam working with the Clerk of Courts team and our County Commissioners to eliminate wasteful spending and to bring our budget under control. We have work to do, but we will get to our goal of running a strong, budget-efficient office. Why should we care? General Fund vs, the Title Fund Many offices in Butler County collect fees of different types. Ohio law dictates how these fees are to be used, Simply decause an office collects fees does not make those fees discretionary funds of the office- holder who collects them. Upon taking office, ! discovered that a significant portion of the Clerks staff were erroneously charged to the Title fund. ORC 325.33 states “..fees credited to the fund shall be used only to pay the costs incurred by the clerk of courts in processing titles under those chapters and in performing the duties of a deputy registrar.” Correcting this problem is a high priority, and we will rectify this issue while providing excellent service and transparency to the public. Since taking office, Mary Swain has worked to put together a team second to none in Ohio. Mary's team is now work- ing to improve office efficiencies and ensure compliance with budgetary laws.