Marlene Carlson: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: MokenaWebsite: http://www.carlson4circuitclerk.comOffice sought: Will Clerk of the Circuit CourtAge: 42Family: Married, two children 8 9 years oldOccupation: Sr. Computer Systems Engineer, Managing Broker of Real Estate Property Management company.Education: B.S. Chemical Engineering, B.S. Chemistry from University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignCivic involvement: Candidate did not respond.Elected offices held: Candidate did not respond.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: Candidate did not respond.Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Will County Courthouse is overcrowded. As many as 1 Million visits in 2011. We need to reduce the head count of courthouse visits and make it easier for our citizens to conduct business on-line.Key Issue 2 Employment issues EEOC complaints. There is high turn over of employees due to mismanagement. This office is managed by fear intimidation. Preference is given to those who are politically connected and NOT based on merit or good performance.Key Issue 3 Failure to manage and complete critical technical projects. Millions of taxpayer dollars spent on projects that have not been completed due to lack of technical expertise. Hiring of out-of-state technical contractors while the State of Illinois' Unemployment Rate remains above the national average.Questions Answers Why are you running for this office, whether for re-election or election for the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you? If so, what?As a taxpayer I think we need more responsible government. All of my experience has been in the private sector. I didn't get my job because of my political connections. I had provable experience and folks hired me. When I am elected the next Clerk of the Circuit Court in Will County I will use my technical and managerial experience to provide better services to the taxpayer of Will County. We all deserve better.If you are an incumbent, describe your main contributions. Tell us of any important initiatives you've led. If you are a challenger, what would you bring to the board and what would your priority be?Candidate did not respond.What changes would you propose to improve the operation of the office of the clerk of the circuit court? Why?Reduce the overcrowding problem by implementing efficient on-line services to the public. Management by fear and intimidation needs to stop. I will manage employees fairly and in an unbiased manner. I believe in a merit-based system of employment. I will provide the much needed technical expertise to move this office forward. Provide efficiency and convenience to folks who need to use our courts to settle their disputes and to get them in and out in a timely manner.How do you propose to improve access to records by the public and transparency of office management?I would utilize better technologies that are on the market today that would make the process of pulling case files from our records easier for the public to do themselves rather than having to obtain copy from a visit to courthouse. I would move our Ill. Supreme Court efile pilot project forward from where it is today and not use the set limitations as an excuse for why more hasn't been done. Other surrounding counties pilot projects are much further along than we are.This field intentionally left blank.Candidate did not respond.