The Deschutes County Clerk remains, thankfully, a non-partisan position in Deschutes County. That’s as it should be, given the clerk’s role in overseeing all local elections. While the local Republican Party has worked to push the candidate whose personal politics reflect its own, we’re not going down that road. While we like Geri Hauser and believe she would make a fine clerk, we see no reason to pull Nancy Blankenship from her post simply because she is registered as a Republican.
And Hauser, a Democrat, hasn’t given us a particularly compelling reason to reconsider that position. A GIS specialist with Deschutes County, Hauser has worked closely with Blankenship’s office and believes that it needs to be modernized with greater emphasis on computer record keeping. We think that’s a good goal and would encourage Blankenship to take Hauser’s criticisms seriously. However, we don’t believe that they rise to the level of a “fireable offense,” which is essentially what Hauser is asking voters to do. To the contrary, Blankenship has a long and commendable record of civil service that dates back to her years as the Redmond city recorder and has by all accounts continued at the county. Her opponent believes that she can squeeze out greater efficiencies and increase the level of customer service. We support that, but we’re not sure that wholesale change in leadership is what’s required at this point.
This article appears in Oct 14-20, 2010.
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I know the Deschutes County Clerk’s race isn’t as glamorous as say a US Senate race or a county commission race, but I feel like The Source really dropped the ball on its endorsement of Nancy Blankenship for Deschutes County Clerk and failed to do its due diligence before making said endorsement.
First and foremost, the County Clerk’s office does much more than just elections. I am not discounting the importance of conducting elections in compliance with state laws, but elections only take place a few times a year and The Source completely ignored the fact the majority of the Clerk’s duties have nothing to do with elections.
So, what else is the Deschutes County Clerk responsible for? The Deschutes County Clerk issues some business licenses, marriage licenses, and domestic partnership registrations. The Deschutes County Clerk also accepts US Passport applications and property tax appeals. The recording and archiving of documents in relation to real estate transactions are what make up the bulk of the Clerk’s responsibilities.
It is the areas of recording and archiving that are in need of improvement. The organization of and access to the Clerk's records is confusing because it is hard to ascertain what is available in what format and how to access documents of interest. Anyone that has used the Clerk’s Recording System Web Query to search for documents would likely agree that the system could be vastly improved and made more user friendly. Not all of the clerk’s records are digital/online and no one should have to search for documents on microfiche with the scanning and indexing technology available today. Access to these records is vital to both the public and private sectors.
The Deschutes County Clerk’s Office has a fund with approximately $400,000 in it that is earmarked for ensuring and improving access the Clerk’s recorded documents. Nancy Blankenship says her office has been researching obtaining new software for “several years”. Recording and archiving software exists and it should not take several years (it’s been almost 8 years) to make a purchase decision, especially when you have a dedicated funding source that cannot be spent on anything else.
The Source should endorse Geri Hauser for Deschutes County Clerk. She works with the Clerk's office on elections and she uses the Clerk's records daily in the course of her job. Geri has an excellent understanding of needed changes in the Clerk's office and she is the right pick for positive change.