Grand Traverse County commissioners already have two items on their to-do list for 2020: considering combining the county clerk and register of deeds positions (thus eliminating one elected office from the county) and revising a policy that guides how departments do business with companies owned by commissioners.

Commission Chair Rob Hentschel asked his fellow commissioners Wednesday to revisit a proposal that would combine the register of deeds and county clerk, two separate elected offices, into one position. Michigan law allows for merging the two roles into one position called a clerk register by a county commission vote. The offices can’t be combined until the end of a current elected term, however, meaning such a decision can essentially only be considered every four years during the election cycle. Commissioners would need to decide by March whether to combine the offices as part of the fall 2020 election – a move that would require the support of at least five commissioners.

Former County Administrator Tom Menzel previously suggested combining the two positions in 2016, a proposal that met with significant backlash from staff and the public. Critics said both the register of deeds and county clerk departments provide unique, specialized services upon which the public heavily relies – positions requiring different skillsets and training. Register of Deeds Peggy Haines is responsible for maintaining all land records for Grand Traverse County, including deeds, mortgages, tax liens, and assignments. County Clerk Bonnie Scheele maintains vital county records – including births, deaths, marriage licenses, and military discharge papers – as well as all civil, criminal, and domestic records for 13th Circuit Court. Scheele also oversees county elections and serves as clerk to the board of commissioners.

In reviving the proposal, Hentschel noted that more than a third of counties in Michigan have “taken an action to combine the register of deeds and the clerk,” and pointed to possible cost savings outlined in Menzel’s 2016 presentation. That document estimated that combining offices would save the county $80,000 annually by eliminating a full-time elected official, and cited benefits including workload and scheduling flexibility among staff, offering a “one-stop shop” to constituents, and having the ability to cross-train employees. Commissioner Gordie LaPointe said he needed to see more data supporting estimated cost savings, but agreed that both offices seemingly revolved around similar functions – “procedures and policies” – and were “basically the same type of work.”

Both Haines and Scheele objected to that characterization, saying “not at all” simultaneously in response to LaPointe’s last remark. “Circuit court records alone…they’re practically paralegals working in there doing all legal documents, sitting in court for trials and criminal days. That’s totally different (than the register of deeds),” said Scheele. “Elections: totally different again. Board of commissioners: totally different again.”

Scheele also noted that employees in the register of deeds and county clerk offices are at different union levels and salary steps, making cross-training impossible without reclassifying every employee in both departments. She said that while some counties have merged the offices successfully, what “works for one county might not work for another,” adding that Grand Traverse County has a “huge hospital” system and booming growth trend that drives significantly more volume to both offices. Haines concurred, saying staff in her department typically have specialized real estate backgrounds and are responsible for “all the real estate transactions in the county.” She added: “If you move forward, it’s a four-year mistake if it does not work out.”

Some commissioners also expressed skepticism about the proposal, including Sonny Wheelock and Bryce Hundley. “Every four years we have this discussion, but the bottom line is their duties and responsibilities are different,” said Wheelock. He stressed the importance of the register of deeds position, saying the county has “one opportunity to make sure that those property splits are recorded properly, and in a timely manner, because all of history comes back to how that deed was registered.” He disagreed the proposal would offer the county cost savings in the long run. “We have great people doing their jobs,” he said. “Leave them alone.”

Hentschel, pointing out that Menzel’s proposal and data was four years old, said he’d at least like staff to study the issue further and bring back an updated recommendation. “Maybe things have changed…maybe there’s new information,” he said. Hentschel also said there are several counties “a lot bigger than us that have combined this office…and I’m not aware of any problems they’ve had as far as accuracy of the duty.” Hundley said he did not see any compelling arguments upfront that would sway him to support combining the positions, but was willing to look at data provided by staff. Commissioners agreed to give staff until the end of February to study the issue and come back with a recommendation before the March deadline to vote.

Staff were also instructed by commissioners Wednesday to look at the county’s policy regulating how county departments and staff do business with companies owned by county commissioners. The discussion was prompted by a $703.88 invoice flagged by the county’s finance department for Roy’s General Store, which is owned by Hentschel and his family. The county’s Commission on Aging department purchased two leaf blowers from the store, unaware of Hentschel’s connection to the business. Hentschel, who said he was not personally involved with the sale, did not alert county staff to the purchase. Michigan law states county commissioners cannot be a party – directly or indirectly – to business between themselves and the county, unless they follow specific disclosure rules.

Wheelock, whose welding business Wheelock & Sons has frequently provided services to the county over the years, said he’s submitted “dozens and dozens” of receipts in that time period documenting every transaction that occurred between his business and the county. County commissioners were required to individually vote to approve each of those invoices before Wheelock received payment. Wheelock said he did not object to Hentschel’s store selling equipment to a county department, but said it was Hentschel’s responsibility to follow disclosure rules and to flag those transactions for a commission vote.

LaPointe questioned how Hentschel or county staff could possibly monitor all of those transactions, pointing out that Roy’s General Store is an approved location for county employees to gas up their vehicles and that the business generates significantly more volume than Wheelock’s welding company. County Administrator Nate Alger acknowledged the issue was a challenging one, saying it’d be easier for staff if the county adopted a policy prohibiting any business transactions with commissioner-owned entities. “Quite frankly for me, it’s clearer to say you won’t do business in these businesses,” he said.

Commissioners asked Alger and finance and legal staff to review the policy and come back with a suggestion for how to better tweak or implement it in January. Commissioners also delayed voting to approve payment for the Roy's General Store invoice until that meeting. Hundley said commissioners might need to accept that serving on the board comes with certain sacrifices, including to their bottom line. “The nature of sitting on this board requires the people who are willing to do it to make a choice,” he said.