Tuesday, December 6, 2011
WHITE PLAINS: The Office of the Westchester County Clerk has been awarded a state grant that will eliminate the expense of storing large volumes of inactive records in offsite storage facilities. The grant from the New York State Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund (LGRMIF) will improve the overall records management system of the Clerk’s Office by doing away with the redundancy of storing files that are already digitally imaged and available electronically to the public. The savings in storage costs and greater efficiency are but a few of many positive outcomes resulting from the awarding of this grant.
“Legal files make up the majority of records maintained by the County Clerk’s office,” began County Clerk Timothy C. Idoni in describing his office’s process of docketing, imaging and storing hard copy files. “Maintaining over forty eight thousand (48,000) boxes of records at an annual cost of $7.25 per box stored at the County Records Center is expensive and inefficient. With the help of this grant, we can continue our transition from a traditionally paper focused office to one that is digitally-based across all services,” stated Idoni.
The grant provides funding to eliminate the storage and related expenses for a discreet set of mostly inactive legal files dated from 2002 to 2004. By eliminating storage, transportation and maintenance needs, staff resources can be reallocated to support other initiatives, such as electronic filing, which will greatly improve the overall services the office provides to Westchester County residents.
LGRMIF is funded through a small twenty-five cent state surcharge on all documents recorded in County Clerks’ offices throughout the state. The funds are then converted into competitive grants awarded to preserve New York State history and heritage. Since becoming County Clerk, Idoni’s office has received two LGRMIF grants to make Land Record maps available online and to more quickly access matrimonial judgments for litigants seeking them. “We are grateful to once again receive a LGRMIF grant to help us continue to provide even more efficient services at a substantial cost savings,” concluded Idoni.
The Office of the Westchester County Clerk, which is located at 110 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in White Plains, is open between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. For more information, call 995-3080 or visit our website at www.westchesterclerk.com.
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