Kay Olson, Grundy County Clerk 2022 Primary Election Questionnaire

Grundy County Clerk candidate Kay Olson answered Shaw Local’s election questionnaire for the Grundy County Clerk primary election.

Voting ends for the primary election on the evening of June 28.

Full Name: Kay Olson

What office are you seeking? County Clerk

What offices, if any, have you previously held? None

City: Morris

Occupation: Grundy County Clerk & Recorder

Education: Joliet Junior College

Campaign Website: No website. Campaign email is kayolsonforcoclerk@gmail.com

What would be your top three priorities over the next four years?

Continue the digitization project of all land records in the Recorder’s Office. Also, looking forward to officially launching our new Property Fraud Alert and Honors Awards Programs in our Recording Office.

We find we are doing more with less staff, and need to prioritize updating staff’s job descriptions to keep up with our ever changing roles & duties.

Continue our important, ever changing work with Election security, both physical and cyber. We work closely with our IT Department, State and Federal agencies to keep up with the latest security measures.

Continue working towards more office efficiencies and modernization.

Taxes are a top concern raised by voters locally. What do you do within your position to address residents’ tax burden?

When working on the budget for the Clerk & Recorder’s Office as well as the Election budget, my main goal is to keep our line items flat, or reduce those line items whenever possible. We do of course have to continue to provide services to our residents, so we always look for ways to do that, that does not come at a cost to the taxpayers. We have implemented many changes to office practices over the years that have realized savings to the County. We also look ahead, and communicate about big purchases needed for the office or possible changes, sometimes mandated by the State, and we then plan on how we can make room in our budget for those changes or needed items.

What level of confidence do you think voters have in local elections? What is driving that confidence or lack thereof?

We have voters with high levels of confidence in our elections, and we also, unfortunately, have a small segment that will never trust the outcome of our elections. I feel much of the lack of confidence comes from misinformation, and from information that is not understood. Election processes can be confusing, especially since each State abides by different election laws, and that can be difficult for some people to understand. There has also been a lot of talk regarding voter fraud, but the fact is that voter fraud is extremely rare, our system has strong checks in place to protect the integrity of our voting process.

Election security is a major concern at all levels. Our goal is to deliver an election process that is not only safe and secure, but also fair, accurate and accessible. There are many layers of security protocols in place, at both the State and County levels. The County Clerk’s office and County IT Department work closely with the Illinois State Board of Elections and their Cyber Navigator Program, as well as working together with other agencies, such as Illinois State Police and the Department of Homeland Security. Working together with these agencies helps to maintain the integrity of our elections and voter information. Through continued cybersecurity education, we continue to strive to make certain future elections and voter data remain safe and secure.

We work to provide fair, honest and transparent elections, and we welcome any resident to call or to stop into the Clerk’s Office, as we are happy to answer any question or concern they may have. We are always looking for election judges. Anyone interested may contact the Clerk’s Office and they will then see first hand all the protocols and processes taken, to ensure safe and secure elections here in Grundy County.

In addition to elections, the county clerk’s office handles a myriad of duties. What do you bring to the table that your opponents do not?

Working in the Clerk & Recorder’s Office for nineteen years, has given me much experience. Many people think we only handle elections, but in fact we do so much more. Our other duties besides elections in the Clerk’s Division are, Tax Levies and Tax Extension, Delinquent Taxes, Ethic statements, Vital Records, issuance of Marriage Licenses, County Board records, Business Registration, and Notary Public commissions. The Recorder’s Division handles all land records: Deed instruments, Mortgage documents, Corporation instruments, Judgements, Military Discharge records, Lis Pendens, Plats/Surveys/Monument Records, and Liens.