Agenda - 12-16-1986 - Laserfiche WebLink

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- • 007 3- Under this approach, agreement could be reached through which proceeds for a given period and amount would be allowed to accumulate to pay for specific improvements. The fund could not be used for purposes other than that designated. In addition, a statewide fund should be created to be distributed through matching grants to those counties where funds for improvement cannot be generated. Salaries From data presented to the Task Force, we learned that register of deeds salaries and benefits vary greatly and that in many instances the register of deeds is paid substantially less than his/her associates in other areas of county government. Registers of deeds argue that higher salaries are needed to attract more qualified people to run for office and remain there in a career status. However, we also learned that in many instances, there has been little communication between registers of deeds and their county commissioners about professional needs of the office. Salaries for positions within county government vary across the state for a variety of reasons. To determine a fair salary for the register of deeds is particularly difficult because that office is outside the county government structure and because the selection process is independent of normal county standards and qualifications. If the ultimate goal in raising salaries is to attract more qualified people and give them career status, making the office subject to merit selection within the county structure seems to be a more viable solution than placing the office under State administrative control. Under merit system status, registers of deeds and their staffs would be covered by established personnel ordinances and salary plan protections prescribed by law. They could request reclassification consideration and appeal grievances to the county manager, personnel committee, or civil court for remedies to any abuse. By having department head status, they would be eligible to have their jobs and salaries periodically studied. Such studies take into account level of responsibility, number of people supervised, workload size and difficulty, education and experience required, and comparable salaries in other departments and in the private sector. Making the job appointive under the council-manager plan of government would remove it from the political arena and enhance teamwork and professionalism among the register of deeds and his/her peers and the county manager. An added advantage for some registers of deeds is that he/she would not be confined to one county for employment opportunity. There could be mobility by moving to different counties over the span of one' s public service career as other department heads now do. We conclude that the main stumbling blocks to resolution of these concerns have been the absence of a coordinated effort to provide technical and professional guidelines, nonenforcement of existing legal requirements, and lack of communication between registers of deeds and county commissioners. We believe that if these two groups work together toward implementation of the first nine recommendations of the Task Force on a planned schedule, the final recommendation to completely reorganize the office might not be necessary.