Gene Moore, the Recorder of Deeds, stated that his budget request reflects a 5% reduction from 2009. The proposed budget shows a $425,000 decrease and a reduction of 10 employees from 2009 in the account which is part of the corporate (or general operating) fund. However, a review of the budget also shows that he is seeking a $400,000 increase in expenditures from an account that is funded by a special purpose fund, which in turn is funded by a portion of the fees charged by his office. This special purpose fund is limited to funding technology and employees related to technology, said the deputy recorder. This money will be used to pay the salaries of 5 employees being added to this account who will be part of a new fraud prevention effort involved in reviewing computer data. Commissioner Collins expressed concern over the Recorder undertaking this initiative that is not mandated, but said she would support it.
Commissioner Peraica questioned why the Recorder has not been able to reduce his staff by more since in 2003 the office handled 1.9 million recordings (the peak) while in 2009 it is expected that there will be only 800,000 processed due to the downturn in property sales. In addition, there have been significant expenditures for computer support and automation. The deputy recorder said that there are more and more unfunded state mandates that the office has to comply with, and that the office has assumed some of the work previously done by a few employees in the Assessor’s and Treasurer’s office, thereby allowing their offices to reduce the number of employees. Commissioner Collins requested a list of all the unfunded mandates.
--Submitted by Observer Pris Mims
