Local government officials serve as the backbone of community governance, holding the responsibility of representing the interests of their constituents and overseeing the functioning of local administrative affairs. With differing tasks from managing budgets, to implementing policies and addressing everyday concerns, it may be difficult to maintain a steady workflow and make sure that all aspects of governance are properly handled. Local government officials often look for a position to assist them in fulfilling the everyday needs of their community, and that position is none other than the clerks department.
One of the primary issues faced by the clerks department is the struggle to streamline operations. Balancing the demands of both the general population as well as government officials can seem to be an overwhelming challenge. The volume of paperwork, challenging requests and inquiries, may make many otherwise simple processes seem frustrating and delayed. Furthermore, outdated systems and software compound these challenges, leading to mistakes that should be avoidable.
Thankfully with the help of GovPilots Municipal and County Clerks Software, processes can be streamlined and made to be more efficient. Keep reading to learn more about streamlining your clerk’s department with GovPilot.
What Does The Local Clerks Department Do?
The local clerks department plays an integral role in the day-to-day operations of all local governments. It serves as the hub of administration, responsible for a wide range of essential functions, none more important than serving as the bridge between constituents and their elected officials. Some of the primary responsibilities of a typical clerks department include:
1. Record Keeping
A local government's clerks department is responsible for keeping and maintaining official records including resolutions, ordinances, contracts, and other important documents generated by the local government. This function also includes ensuring that records are properly archived and accessible to the general public, as well as ensuring that public records requests are fulfilled.
Local Governments Can & Should Use the Cloud for record keeping.
2. Meetings and Elections
The clerk's office is also responsible for facilitating local public meetings of a community’s governing bodies. The Clerk's office does things like preparing agendas and making meeting materials available to the general public as well as government officials. The clerks department also plays a crucial role in the electoral process, overseeing voter registration, ballet preparation, and polling site coordination.
Learn everything you can about Improving Local Election Voter Turnout here.
3. Licensing and Permits
The issuance of various different licenses and permits such as business licenses, building permits, and marriage licenses. The clerks department often serves as the starting point for constituents seeking these different permits.
Learn How Local Government Permitting Software Works here.
4. Administrative Support
An understated aspect of the clerk's office daily role in local government is their administrative services. They offer assistance to local government officials in various government departments through managing official correspondences, coordinating appointments, and handling inquiries from the public. The clerks department is largely responsible for all of the paperwork it takes to ensure a smoothly run municipal government.
Learn more about Going Paperless in Government here.
What Is The Importance of The Clerk’s Department to Your Municipality?
As previously stated, the clerks department serves as an integral part of many local government processes. The clerks department acts as a support system for the effective functioning of your local government. The positive impacts that the clerk's department has on your local community cannot be understated. Some of the key aspects that highlight their importance include:
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Constituent Transparency
The clerks department offers constituents transparency by maintaining and providing access to public records, ordinances, and resolutions. This fosters accountability amongst public officials and ensures that residents have access to important information about their community.
Read up on Building Trust in Local Government and Keeping Your Constituents Happy.
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Legal Compliance Standards
Clerk’s Departments will ensure that local government operations follow legal requirements and procedures. This may include staying up to date on legislative changes and making sure that your municipality's actions comply with relevant laws and regulations.
Learn everything you need to know about The Potential of Your Government’s Digital Transformation here.
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Community Engagement
Through different community outreach efforts, the clerks department engages with the community to encourage participation in government affairs. This can include organizing public hearings, town hall meetings, and other events to gather input from residents on important community matters.
Common Roadblocks to Clerks Department Workflows
There are many different roadblocks that can hinder the efficiency at which your clerk's office may run. These can vary depending on the size and needs of your municipality. Here are some common roadblocks that your clerks department might face:
1. Outdated Technology
The use of incompatible technology systems can slow down processes and limit productivity. Lack of modern software such as Govpilot’s Municipal and County Clerks' Software can create inefficiencies in record-keeping, document management and general communication.
Consider how to Improve Local Government Interdepartmental Communications.
2. Limited Resources
Insufficient budget allocations can lead to staffing shortages within your clerk's department. This can lead to delays in processing paperwork, responding to constituent requests, or organizing town hall meetings.
Check out our Guide to Local Government Budgeting here.
3. Inefficient Processes
Ineffective or outdated workflows within your clerks department can slow down productivity. Streamlining processes with the help of GovPilot’s offering of government management software, can resolve these issues.
Learn about The Most Impactful Automated Government Workflows here.
What is Clerks Department Software?
With the large amount of services that the Clerk's Department offers to citizens, it is important that processes are streamlined in order to make otherwise tedious projects seamless. GovPilot’s Municipal and County Clerks Software, allows for the digitization of forms and automation of workflows that make licensing, permitting and request fulfillment more organized and transparent.
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Licensing and Permitting Capabilities
The main aspect of GovPilots County Clerk's Software is the different streamlined licensing processes that are offered. Some of the licenses we streamline include:
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Online Payments
Thanks to GovPilots Payment / Receipt software, your clerks department is easily able to manage funds received by the local government. Receipts of payment have the ability to auto populate payment amounts, departments, as well as applicable budget codes.
Read on about Best Government Payment Processing Services here.
The Most Popular Clerk’s Department Software Modules
GovPilot’s Clerk's Department software can help your local municipality streamline many different processes. Some of the most useful aspects of GovPilot’s Municipal and County Clerks Software include:
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Business Registration
With the help of our Business registration software, prospective local business owners are able to apply for or renew their annual registration. Local governments can utilize this software to help Drive Local Economic Development, by allowing for more local entrepreneurs to enter their communities.
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Volunteer Applications
Volunteerism is a necessity in nearly all local municipalities. Constituent involvement in outreaches and efforts within their communities will lead to a more enriching and fulfilling environment for all.
With the help of GovPilots Volunteer Application, constituents are able to easily sign up for different volunteer groups and opportunities, while also giving the clerks department the ability to keep track of appointments.
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Public Records Requests
Municipality clerks have the ability to manage requests for public records with the help of GovPilots Open Public Records Request (OPRA) Software. With this software, appropriate deadlines as well as notifications for requests can be set. Different local government departments are then able to upload the records allowing for the clerks to fulfill the requests.
The aforementioned clerks' software services are all extremely useful and beneficial to local governments as a whole. Utilizing these programs to simplify and streamline the daily functions of your clerk's department can allow for a smoother connection between local government officials and their constituents.
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Dog/ Cat Licensing
GovPilot’s Dog or Cat License software is a convenient solution for local pet owners to apply or renew their ownership licenses, and for government officials to easily track this information. This module creates a database filled with contact information of owners which is very useful for your local animal control department in case of an accidental loss of a pet.
Learn more about how your city can Become More Pet Friendly With GovPilot here.
Streamline Your Clerk’s Department With GovPilot Today
It is important that local government officials recognize that all parties involved in daily local government functions have these processes streamlined and simplified. With the help of GovPilots Municipal and County Clerks Software, your clerk’s department can easily bridge the gap between local government officials and their constituents. Book a Consultation with GovPilot today to learn everything about how to streamline workflows and improve your local governance.
Clerks Department FAQs
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Why is the Clerk’s Department vital to smooth government operations?
Clerk’s departments are responsible for tracking constituent forms, payments and paperwork. Clerks department employees can now complete their responsibilities almost fully online, look up records in just a click and immediately understand its status - when an application was submitted, what phase it is in, which colleague is assigned to it, and when it was completed. Even team members from other departments can look up records, eliminating the need to respond to distracting requests via phone, email or in person.
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How can government software improve the local Clerk’s Department?
GovPilot offers end-to-end digital forms for all of your Clerks’ departmental workflows. These forms are available 24/7 on your government’s website for residents to complete without needing to participate in manual workflows, form fields accurately capture all relevant details, required information, and payment information directly from your constituents prior to submission. No manual data entry necessary on the back end and no more follow-up from staff is required to run the constituent end of department operations.
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