Q&A with Bucholz

1. Why are you running for this office, whether for re-election or election the first time? Is there a particular issue that motivates you and, if so, what is that? What will be your priority in office?

I am running for re-election because I am a proven, trusted, and professional administrator, and I have served the citizens in the DuPage County Recorder's Office for the past 24 years. Customer service has always been my number one goal. Over the years I have faced many challenges in the Recorder's Office. Time and again, I have always responded with the technological changes needed in order to ensure the quality, accuracy, and safety of your land records. I believe that personal identity theft and mortgage fraud are the challenges and the main priority the Recorder's Office faces today; this is the issue that motivates my work in the Recorder's Office. Personal identity theft affects us all. I am confronting this issue and will provide the residents of DuPage the tools they need to protect sensitive information in the Recorder's Office. I have already initiated a procedure to notify property owners when title to their property changes hands. Mortgage fraud has created an undue burden on innocent homeowners requiring them to seek legal assistance. I will be creating a fraud alert system that will include an e-mail alert, a dedicated fraud hotline, and partnership with other government agencies. This will create several necessary road blocks to deter unscrupulous people from using land records for personal gain. When re-elected, my goal will be to execute these changes to their fullest extent, providing the safety and security that DuPage County citizens need and deserve.

2. If you are an incumbent, describe your main contributions. Tell us of important initiatives you've led. If you are not an incumbent, tell us what contributions you would make.

Having served the citizens of DuPage County for 24 years in either an appointed or elected position, I feel that I have greatly contributed to the success of the Recorder's Office. I have worked with the Illinois State Legislature to help pass the Uniform Property Electronic Recording Act. This Act permits all 102 counties in Illinois to accept electronic delivery of documents for recording. I have subsequently been nominated to the Illinois Electronic Recording Commission by Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White. This commission is charged with establishing rules to standardize electronic recordings throughout Illinois. This is a major breakthrough in preventing identity theft and mortgage fraud that I spoke of earlier. Additionally, I have enacted a notification process for property owners that will alert them if there is a change in ownership to their property without their knowledge. I have submitted a budget for 2009 that is less than the budget I proposed 4 years ago when I took over the Recorder's Office, saving DuPage taxpayers money. I have taken steps to ensure the safety of all land records from 1839 to present from unforeseen man-made or natural disaster. I am currently working in conjunction with the Judges of the 18th Judicial Circuit Court to write legislation that would protect mistaken identity with credit bureaus and financial institutions. Moreover, I have created the Metro Recorders Group which includes DuPage, Cook, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties in order to facilitate common business processes. This has led to the formation of a continuity of operation plan in the event of a disaster in the Metro Chicago region. In all, I feel that over the past 24 years my main contribution has been my willingness to take the initiative in providing safer, simpler, and better services to the citizens of DuPage County.

3. What are your goals in terms of delivery of services and management of the DuPage County Recorder's office?

I stated earlier that customer service has always been my number one goal. The delivery and management of our services is always evolving and improving due to cutting edge technologies. The public's expectation of quality service requires an in-depth knowledge of the office, which I already have. My many years of experience give me the ability to recognize change when needed, and to efficiently and successfully manage the resources to address a changing environment. I know there are always ways to improve services for the public; I will not settle for anything less than our best efforts. Future improvements are not limited to incorporating new technology to improving our records, quality, accuracy, and security. Improvements may also come from looking outside the box to address transportation issues, for example, I am currently identifying potential satellite locations in DuPage for our customers to reduce their need to travel to my office to seek our services. This would save time, fuel costs, and road congestion among other environmental issues. These problems are on everyone's mind today, and I hope that my changes will alleviate some of the stress Dupage citizens currently experience.

4. What would your priorities be in budget requests for this office?

My priorities in budget requests are simple; do more with less. the taxpayers of this county, and I'm one of them, expect me to use my expertise to not only run the most efficient Recorder's Office, but at the same time to not rely on taxpayers for anymore revenue than is necessary. Currently less than 50% of the budget for the Recorder's Office comes by way of taxes from the public. I will continue to maintain and hope to improve that budget conservativeness. I have presented a budget for the fiscal year 2009 which is less than the budget I presented 4 years ago when I took office. I have come in under budget for each of those 4 years. I attribute my effective budget practices to my 24 years of experience and knowledge of the office. The taxpayers have a proven administrator in me; by re-electing me as Recorder, taxpayers are assured that I will continue to efficiently and effectively use their hard earned dollars in the most advantageous way in running the office.

5. Do you favor any changes in the training and/or deployment of the office staff? If so, what?

I do favor changes in training and deployment of staff. I don't believe the office should be a static environment. The office I was elected to 4 years ago is different from the one today. I am already in the process of a reorganization plan which began nearly a year ago. Four separate departments have been merged into two, thereby reducing the number of supervisors. Every employee has commenced cross training in every department of the office, allowing each of them to successfully execute any of the duties in handling a document for recordation. My reorganization plan showcases my ability to recognize need for change due to technical advances and the needs of the customer. I recognize that our customers expect quick, accurate, and friendly customer service. As I said earlier, I always seek ways to improve services. The technical advances I have seen in just the last 4 years indicate that the look of the Recorder's Office will continue to change in the years to come. As I have already dealt with and handled new changes, I feel that I am the best person prepared for change in the future. For example, my experience with electronic recordation has indicated to me that electronic delivery of documents is the wave of the future. This new process will require cross training for every staff member in an electronic capacity; this is yet another change I am ready to implement.

6. What specific steps, if any, can be taken to make this office operate more efficiently?

There are specific steps to make the office operate more efficiently; as I discussed before, I am in the process of implementing these steps for improvement of the office and to the benefit of the citizens of DuPage County. First, electronic recording will reduce the need to replace employees as the volume of the delivery of those documents increases. The increasing use of electronic recording will, without a doubt, increase efficiency in the office. The time it will take for a document to be available to the public will be reduced from the current 24 to 48 hour time frame to real time access. Second, I have already formed partnerships with the Clerk of the Circuit Court, the Supervisor of Assessments, and the DuPage County Clerk. These partnerships cover electronic recording, digital scanning of documents and Web site application coupled with a fee payment system. Land records and their use by the various governmental offices is the common element in these partnerships. My partnerships with these offices allow all of us to reduce our operational costs. More partnerships like those already in use are currently being formed. The new efficiencies that I have developed are not only occurring behind the scenes; there will be new efficiencies offered to the public. As I stated before, I am currently identifying satellite locations for the Recorder's Office in governmental offices located in various parts of the county. This will reduce road congestion and save on fuel cost, which all benefit the customer. As for the Recorder's Office, it will allow me to allocate resources and personnel more effectively in conducting our business. Finally, I am a member of the DuPage County Strategic Planning Committee. As a member of this committee, it is my goal to appropriately and judiciously plan for the future of DuPage County and its citizens. My position as Recorder thus allows me to offer the services or the Recorder's Office to fill a need when appropriate, eliminating the need for the creation of expensive new programs. I believe that efficiency is a crucial element to good customer service, and as Recorder of DuPage County, I will continue to search new ways to provide efficient services to the public.