Primary Duties and Responsibilities

The County Clerk is responsible for the administrative work of the county in which they serve.  Many of their duties are set by state statute and they include the following:

• Filing vital record documents such as birth certificates and death certificates
• Issuing Marriage Licenses
• Performing Marriage Ceremonies
• Filing Business Assumed Name and Dissolution
• Receiving Concealed Weapons License applications
• Filing Veterans Discharge forms
• Filing Notary Public bonds and commissions
• Maintaining Voter Registration File for all townships and cities in the county
• Election Coordinator for the county
• Clerk of the Circuit Court and Family Division
• Filing Circuit Court cases and Family Court cases which include felony criminal charges, civil cases over $25000.00, divorce proceedings, personal protection orders, juvenile delinquent petitions, adoptions, name changes, admission to the state bar, appeals and writ of garnishment petitions.

Did You Know...
	The County clerk has been authorized to perform marriages since September 29, 2006? They can also perform marriages in other counties with the written authorization of that county clerk.

The Clerk’s office oversees the filing of vital records and issuing certified copies of documents on file. As Clerk of the Circuit Court, prepares the docket of scheduled cases, administers the oath to jurors and witnesses, documents court actions in all cases heard and prepares orders for the Judge’s signature.

The County Clerk serves as Clerk to the Board of Commissioners, Jury Commission, Concealed Weapons Licensing Board, Plat Board and Board of Canvassers. This involves attending meetings, taking minutes and filing resolutions and contracts entered into by the Board of Commissioners in accordance with legal requirements.

This position is also responsible for preparation and maintenance functions required in the daily operations of the expense portion of the County Budget. This involves financial strategic planning, budgeting and forecasting expenditures of various departments and providing timely adjustments to budgets as directed by the Board of Commissioners.

The clerk is also the Chief Election Official for the county which involves filing candidate petitions, programming memory cards for voting machines, sending ballot information to the printer, proofreading ballots after printing, ordering election supplies for the townships and cities and training election inspectors on Election Day procedures. The Clerk’s office also files all campaign finance documents for candidates and ballot question committees.
The County Clerk provides comprehensive customer service which includes accurate, prompt and courteous assistance to members of the public and to internal offices when requested.