Performance review weld county clerk and recorder by The Greeley Publishing Company

Performance Review of the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office

Submitted to the Weld County Council by

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC 1390 Market Street, Suite 1150 San Francisco, CA 94102

August 18, 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary ............................................................................................................... i Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 1. Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels ................................................................ 6 2. Work Flow and Alignment .......................................................................................... 38 3. Administrative and Executive Decision Making .......................................................... 52 Appendix A: Survey of Clerk & Recorder Employees ....................................................... A‐1 Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey .......................................................... B‐1 Appendix C: Additional Analysis of Big 10 Counties Survey ............................................ C‐1 Appendix D: Recording Fees ............................................................................................ D‐1

Executive Summary: Performance Review of the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC was retained by the Weld County Council to conduct a Performance Review of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The County Council requested that this performance review be conducted in conjunction with a performance review of the Board of County Commissioners. Our findings, conclusions, and recommendations resulting from our Performance Review of the Board of County Commissioners are included in a separate report to the County Council. The performance review, although technically not a performance audit, was conducted in accordance with Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards, 2011 Revision, issued by the Comptroller General of the United States, U.S. Government Accountability Office as modified by directives from the County Council to ensure investigative integrity. The scope of the performance review included activities and business conducted from January 1, 2014 to the present. The project team submitted a draft report, with findings and recommendations, to the County Council in order to solicit feedback from the Clerk and Recorder on the accuracy of findings and conclusions on August 14, 2017. The final report, incorporating comments and information provided via the County Council, on August 18, 2017. This report is structured in three sections: organizational structure and staffing levels; work flow and alignment; and administrative and executive decision making. Our findings and recommendations are summarized below.

Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels Persistent understaffing, the use of overtime, low employee morale, and high turnover rates have created a negative feedback loop in the Motor Vehicle Department of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The results of a survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office staff indicate low job satisfaction in Motor Vehicle and high occurrences of favoritism and retaliation. Comparisons with other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado show that Weld County’s Office is persistently understaffed and does not have key managerial positions found in other counties. Our recommendations to hire additional clerk and managerial staff, to reduce the use of overtime, and to provide training and accountability for favoritism and retaliation in the office comprehensively address the negative feedback loop identified by the project team and will improve the organizational structure of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Executive Summary

Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

1.5

1.6

1.7

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, a motor vehicle branch coordinator or supervisor. Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, one additional Tech IV position in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department to restore the office organization to four Tech IV/Team Lead positions. The position should be a new position, not a reclassification or substitution of a Tech III position. This recommendation will ultimately increase Greeley Motor Vehicle staffing levels by one hire. Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, one Tech IV position in the Del Camino branch office and one Tech IV position in the Fort Lupton branch office to serve as team leaders and assist the branch office managers in running the branch locations. To address understaffing in the Motor Vehicle Department, the positions should be new positions rather than reclassifications or substitutions of Tech III positions. This recommendation will ultimately increase branch office staffing levels by one hire at each location. Develop, with the Board of County Commissioners, an overtime expenditure target to maintain service levels and minimize negative impact of overtime on staff, and budget the appropriate amount of staff to achieve that target Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, three additional Motor Vehicle Tech IIs or IIIs in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Office to address the understaffing. The Clerk and Recorder’s Office should monitor workload and the use of overtime to assess whether additional employees are needed once the new hires have been fully integrated into the office. Immediately ask the Department of Human Resources and the County Attorney to conduct a training for all management‐level staff on fairness and equal treatment, fostering employee empowerment and community, and how to avoid even the appearance of favoritism. The training should be mandatory and all managers, the Chief Deputy, and the Clerk and Recorder should attend and participate in the training. Make policy changes that address the staff concerns identified in the survey and ask the Department of Human Resources to conduct an anonymous follow up survey of staff each year regarding favoritism and fear of retaliation to assess the improvement of management‐level staff on this issue. Results should be presented to the Board of County Commissioners.

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Executive Summary

Section 2: Work Flow and Alignment Weld County’s population has increased by 56 percent since 2000 and is projected to grow even faster through 2030. These new residents have increased the workload of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, particularly in the Motor Vehicle Department, through increases in vehicle registrations, voting, and property transactions. Wait times for typical motor vehicle transactions in the Greeley office average approximately 23 minutes, often frustrating the public. While the budgeted full time equivalent positions (FTEs) in the Motor Vehicle Department have increased since 2014, the increase in transaction volume has meant that the workload distribution among staff has remained unchanged. Although the Department of Information Technology conducted a work flow review in February 2017, which recommended a dedicated mail and telephone processing center, the Clerk and Recorder has not been able to implement either due to lack of staff. Compared to nine peer counties in Colorado, all three Clerk and Recorder functions (Motor Vehicle, Recording, and Elections) are understaffed. Separately, our review found public communication regarding Recording fees was incorrect and poorly organized. In addition, the training of new Motor Vehicle employees could be made more effective by emphasizing practical on‐the‐job training, such as computer skills and shadowing current employees.

Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 2.1

2.2

2.3

2.4

Use the additional three FTEs in Recommendation 1.5 to staff and fully implement the Processing Center recommended by the Department of Information Technology. Develop and document policies and procedures to track and incorporate customer feedback and develop criteria and procedures for when to follow up with individual customers. Immediately update the recording fee information in the recorded phone message, and should review all recording fee information on the website for accuracy. Going forward, the Clerk and Recorder should explicitly delegate to a deputy or manager the responsibility of tracking changes in Colorado law and updating public‐facing information accordingly in order to ensure the accuracy of fees quoted online or on the telephone. Consolidate Recording fees and present them together in accessible, easy‐to‐use tables on one webpage. The webpage should note the date of last revision and accepted forms of payment, particularly when forms of payment differ by fee type (for example, marriage license fees are only accepted in cash). Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

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Executive Summary

2.5

Work with the trainer to develop a survey or assessment instrument to solicit feedback from recent hires several months after the completion of their training. The Clerk and Recorder should review this feedback with the trainer and identify strengths of the training program and areas for improvement.

Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making The Clerk and Recorder has made several personnel policy changes since 2015. These include aligning the Office’s vacation use policy with that of the rest of the County and implementing productivity standards for the Recording Department. Although the merits of these policy changes may appear reasonable, staff would benefit from improved communications about such changes, particularly the reasons motivating the change in policy. Our review also identified several issues in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office facility. There was a WiFi network that the waiting public wished to use (based on number of customer requests for login credentials), however the Clerk and Recorder decided to shut it down rather than request to expand it. Two staff members cannot discreetly access their silent alarm triggers, leaving them vulnerable to threatening customers. In addition, the book keeping area could be better secured against intrusion. Finally, our review found that the recruitment processes for all eleven new hires in 2016 were not conducted in compliance with the Clerk and Recorder’s internal recruitment procedures and one contract was signed without approval from the Board of County Commissioners, a violation of the Weld County Charter.

Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 3.1

3.2

3.3

Update the Department’s office policies to include information on the motivation and the terms of any new policy and how employees will be held accountable for meeting policy goals. The policy document should be updated as policies change and new versions should immediately be distributed to staff. Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, that the Department of Information Services install and operate open public WiFi that does not require login credentials at all three Motor Vehicle offices. Request the Director of Buildings and Grounds to adjust the placement of these two alarm buttons in Recording so that employees can safely and undetectably access them in the case of a violent or threatening customer. Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Executive Summary

3.4

3.5

Provide more privacy and security for the bookkeeping operations in Greeley, either by locating bookkeeping employees and equipment near the back of the office away from a public‐facing point of entry or by limiting the public’s view of the bookkeeping operations. Continue to seek approval from the Board of County Commissioners for all contracts.

The Director of Human Resources should: 3.6

Ensure that all hires starting January 1, 2018 or later in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office follow the Office’s recruitment procedures for interviews and testing. The Clerk and Recorder and Human Resources should report the results to the Board of County Commissioners in the first quarter of each year.

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Introduction Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC was retained by the Weld County Council to conduct a Performance Review of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The County Council requested that this performance review be conducted in conjunction with a performance review of the Board of County Commissioners. Our findings, conclusions, and recommendations resulting from our Performance Review of the Board of County Commissioners are included in a separate report to the County Council. The Clerk and Recorder is an elected official and serves a four‐year term. The current Clerk and Recorder is serving her first term, which began on January 1, 2015 and will end on December 31, 2018. The Clerk and Recorder oversees the Recording Department, the Elections Department, and the Motor Vehicle Department in Weld County. Recording is responsible for processing and preserving documents as public record, including real estate records, military discharges, school records, maps and plats, marriage licenses, and civil unions. Elections is responsible for voter registration, compilation of ballots, and early voting ballots in primary, general, and special elections, as well as training election day judges, conducing election day procedures, tabulating election results, and certifying elections. Motor Vehicle, the largest function of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office in Weld County, is responsible for the titling and registration of all motor vehicles purchased, leased, or entering the state.

Scope The basic components of the performance review, as defined by the County Council, were to:

1. Review existing organizational structure, which includes Administration, and outline benefits and challenges of the current division of labor, span of control, chain of command, authority, responsibility, delegation, and accountability. 2. Review division functions in terms of work flow and alignment. 3. Assess whether staffing levels are appropriate to meet workloads based on current and future level of service agreements and provide comparisons to similar jurisdictions. 4. Review administrative and executive decision making structures to identify opportunities for improvement. 5. Identify strengths and weaknesses of current organizational structure including root causes behind current strengths or weaknesses that could influence capacity to achieve future innovation. Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

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6. Provide an assessment of and report any findings regarding personal and professional integrity issues in complying with the County Mission Statement and Colorado Revised Statutes for governance, conflicts of interest, legal compliance, responsible stewardship of resources and financial oversight, openness and disclosure, and integrity in fundraising. 7. Report on findings and make recommendations with the goal of assisting the County in becoming more operationally effective and efficient to its customer base. 8. Provide an implementation plan for improvement for the immediate, short, medium, and long term. The scope of the performance review included activities and business conducted from January 1, 2014 to the present.

Methodology The performance review, although technically not a performance audit, was conducted in accordance with Government Auditing Standards, 2011 Revision, issued by the Comptroller General of the United States, U.S. Government Accountability Office as modified by directives from the County Council to ensure investigative integrity. In accordance with these requirements and standard audit practices, we performed the following procedures: 

Conducted an entrance conference with the Clerk and Recorder, the Deputy to the Clerk and Recorder, the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners, the former Clerk and Recorder (and current County Commissioner), a member of the Weld County Council, and Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC staff.



Conducted interviews with the Clerk and Recorder, the Chief Deputy to the Clerk and Recorder, and all Clerk and Recorder Office managers.



Conducted interviews with several department heads and other County officials, including members of the Board of County Commissioners, the Director of Human Resources, the Director of Finance, the Director of Purchasing, the Controller, and other County staff.



Obtained and reviewed initial data and documentation submitted by the Clerk and Recorder including internal policies and procedures; financial data; organizational charts; job descriptions for all positions directly under the Clerk and Recorder’s supervision; position information, and information on employee grievances.



Obtained and reviewed additional data and documentation including contracts and purchasing requests, recruitment documentation, training materials, meeting Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Introduction

minutes, human resource data, county organizational policies, and other information. 

Received and considered confidential input provided by current and former employees of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.



Collected responses to a confidential survey of employees of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, discussed in more depth below.

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Conducted a benchmarking survey to compare the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office with Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in large Colorado counties, discussed in more depth below.

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Submitted a draft report, with findings and recommendations, to the County Council in order to solicit feedback from the Clerk and Recorder on the accuracy of findings and conclusions on August 14, 2017.



Submitted the final report, incorporating comments and information provided via the County Council, on August 18, 2017.

Employee Survey The project team conducted an online survey of employees in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office between May 5 and May 21, 2017. Survey invitations were sent to all full‐time and part‐time employees in the Greeley, Del Camino, and Fort Lupton offices except the Clerk and Recorder and the Chief Deputy. Prior to sending the survey invitations, employees were given the opportunity to opt to have the survey invitation sent to a personal email address rather than their Weld County email address, which was used by default. Employees were also provided with instructions on how to access their Weld County email addresses remotely, allowing them to complete the survey from home. Participation in the survey was restricted only to employees with the invitation email, and respondents could only submit one response. Of the 56 total invitations sent, 30 employees submitted completed responses for a 53.6 percent response rate. One blank response was also submitted but excluded from our analysis of results. Participation in the survey was optional and employees self‐selected in to the group of respondents. The group of respondents is not a representative sample because it was not drawn randomly from the group of all Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees. Survey results should be interpreted only as a representation of the opinions of approximately half of the employees in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The percentages presented of the respondents are not necessarily representative of all employees. The full employee survey results can be found in Appendix A.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Introduction

Benchmarking Big 10 Counties Survey At the suggestion of the Director of Finance and Administration and several County Commissioners, the project team reviewed the results of the Big 10 Counties survey, which is a collection of data produced by ten large counties in Colorado: Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Mesa, Pueblo, and Weld Counties. These counties are the largest counties by population in Colorado excluding the City and County of Denver. Surveys are available for each year starting in 2005 through 2016. The data is based on adopted budgets provided by participating counties, but the survey cautions that comparisons are not exact and further investigation and analysis would be needed to make exact comparisons. Nevertheless, the information can be used for benchmarking and to identify overall trends across counties as well as similarities and differences among counties. Weld County typically presents information and data from the Big 10 Counties survey in its annual adopted budget. A collection of tables presenting the underlying Big 10 Counties survey data presented in Exhibits 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5 in Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels can be found in Appendix C. Benchmarking Survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Other Counties Based on information collected during the initial phase of the project, the project team devised a set of survey questions to request additional information from Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in other counties in Colorado. Information requested included organization and office structure, hiring and turnover, and policies and procedures. The project team contacted the same counties that were included in the Big 10 Counties survey, excluding Weld County: Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Mesa, and Pueblo. Of these nine, we received responses from six counties: Adams, Boulder, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Mesa Counties. The full text of the benchmarking survey and its results can be found in Appendix B.

Acknowledgements Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC (HMR) would like to acknowledge Weld County’s Clerk and Recorder, Chief Deputy, and office managers as well as the Director of Information Services, the Director of Finance and Administration, the County Attorney, and the Director of Human Resources. Requests for information, records, and data were met promptly and thoroughly by these individuals throughout the performance review process. We would also like to acknowledge the Clerk and Recorder’s Offices of Adams, Boulder, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer,

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Introduction

and Mesa Counties for responding to our benchmarking survey and for providing information and data. We would like to thank all the staff in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office who responded to our employee survey, welcomed us during our on‐site visits, and spoke to and shared with us during interviews, focus groups, and one‐on‐one conversations.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels Persistent understaffing, the use of overtime, low employee morale, and relatively high turnover rates have created a negative feedback loop in the Motor Vehicle Department of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The results of a survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office staff indicate low job satisfaction in Motor Vehicle and high occurrences of favoritism and retaliation. Comparisons with other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado show that Weld County’s Office is understaffed and does not have key managerial positions found in other counties. Our recommendations to hire additional clerk and managerial staff, to reduce the use of overtime, and to provide training and accountability for favoritism and retaliation in the office comprehensively address the negative feedback loop identified by the project team and will improve the organizational structure of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

The Weld County Clerk and Recorder, the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department, the Elections Department, and the Recording Department are all located in Greeley. The Southeast Weld Branch Office (also referred to as the Fort Lupton office) is located in Fort Lupton and the Southwest Weld Branch Office (also referred to as the Del Camino office) is located in Longmont. The Office’s organization structure and employee counts are presented in Exhibit 1.1 below.

Exhibit 1.1: Organization Structure of the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office

Source: Weld County Clerk and Recorder, as of July 2017 Note: Tech IVs are consdiered Team Leads.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

As shown in Exhibit 1.1 above, under the Office’s existing organizational structure, the Clerk and Recorder, an elected official, supervises a Chief Deputy. Five managers, two at the branch offices and three in Greeley, report to the Chief Deputy and the Clerk and Recorder. The three managers in Greeley supervise teams of clerks composed of Office Technician IVs (Tech IVs), who function as team leads, and Office Technician IIs and IIIs (Tech IIs and IIIs). The branch offices in Fort Lupton and Del Camino do not have a separate team leader position between the office managers and the clerks. Employees in the Fort Lupton and Del Camino offices are considered Motor Vehicle employees, although they also perform some recording and elections functions (for example, marriage licenses and voter registration).

Other Counties with Branch Offices have Motor Vehicle Coordinators As shown in Exhibit 1.1 above, all the department and office managers in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office report to the Chief Deputy, who reports to the Clerk and Recorder. There is no motor vehicle manager who coordinates motor vehicle activities among the three offices. A review of the organization structures of other Colorado counties that participated in the benchmarking survey showed that of the respondents, all counties with branch offices have a motor vehicle coordinator, director, or manager position who oversees the office managers at all locations.1 

In Adams County, the branch managers report to a branch coordinator, who reports to a motor vehicle manager.



In Boulder County, the motor vehicle office and branch managers report to a motor vehicle coordinator.



In El Paso County, the branch supervisors report to a motor vehicle manager.



In Jefferson County, the branch managers report to a motor vehicle director.



In Larimer County, vehicle licensing coordinators report to an assistant manager, who reports to a vehicle licensing manager. The structure is somewhat unusual in that some branches have more than one vehicle licensing coordinator.



In Mesa County, which does not have branch offices, a motor vehicle manager supervises customer support specialists and reports to a division director.

According to the Clerk and Recorder, the duties of a motor vehicle manager in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office would include, among others: coordinating workflow and tasks among branch offices; acting as a 1

The Clerk and Recorder’s Offices that responded to the benchmarking survey were in Adams, Boulder, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Mesa Counties. Adams, El Paso, Jefferson, and Larimer counties have Motor Vehicle Departments larger than Weld’s, Boulder County has a Motor Vehicle Department of a similar size as Weld’s, and Mesa County has a Motor Vehicle Department smaller than Weld’s. All responding counties with branch offices have some form of a coordinator position. See Appendix B for the full results of the benchmarking survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Offices.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

point person for county and state projects; guiding the office managers on human resources‐related issues; communicating important policies among the three offices; coordinating and making consistent the schedule for breaks, lunches, vacations, and rotations; and assessing the new hire training and organizing refresher training. According to the Clerk and Recorder, these needs are currently either unmet or filled by the Clerk and Recorder or Chief Deputy as time permits. The addition of a branch coordinator would modify the organization structure of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office as shown in Exhibit 1.2 below.

Exhibit 1.2: Proposed Organization Structure of the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office with Addition of Branch Coordinator

Recommendation 1.1: The Clerk and Recorder should request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, a motor vehicle branch coordinator or supervisor.

Tech IV/Team Leads in the Motor Vehicle Department As shown in Exhibits 1.1 and 1.2 above, all the department managers in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office located in Greeley have at least one Tech IV who functions as a team leader with some supervisory duties. The branch offices in Fort Lupton and Del Camino do not have a separate team leader position between the office managers and the clerks.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

The Greeley Motor Vehicle Department Does Not Have Enough Team Leads In the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department, Office Tech IVs act as team leaders for groups of Office Tech IIs and Office Tech IIIs. Office Tech IIs and IIIs go to the Office Tech IVs with questions, for help managing difficult customers, and for general support. Since 2013 the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department has had between four and five Office Tech IV positions. In the 2016 fiscal year there were four Tech IV positions, but one Tech IV position was converted to a Tech III position and filled at that level in December of 2016. There are currently three Tech IV positions in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department for the 2017 fiscal year, as shown in the organization chart above. Motor Vehicle Tech IVs in Greeley have the highest span of control ratio of all Departments and branch offices. The Team Lead: Clerk span of control ratios are 7.7 in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department, 3 in the Elections Department,2 and 7 in the Recording Department. The Manager: Clerk span of control ratios in the branch offices are 4 in the Fort Lupton office and 7 in the Del Camino office. In focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations, Motor Vehicle employees expressed frustration with the current number of Tech IVs. Clerks stated that if they had a question or needed help with a customer, they often had to wait to get help from a Tech IV who was helping someone else, causing the customer to wait along with the clerk. Employees noted that the availability of Tech IVs was particularly problematic during lunch hours. Employees overall reported that the Tech IVs are spread too thin and that there are not enough Tech IVs available to help the Tech IIs and Tech IIIs, impairing the flow of the office and the efficiency of clerks. Recommendation 1.2: The Clerk and Recorder should request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, one additional Tech IV position in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department to restore the office organization to four Tech IV/Team Lead positions. The position should be a new position, not a reclassification or substitution of a Tech III position. This recommendation will ultimately increase Greeley Motor Vehicle staffing levels, which are discussed in more detail in this section, by one hire.

Branch Offices in Other Counties Generally Have a Team Lead or Assistant Manager Position The two branch offices, Fort Lupton and Del Camino, are each managed by an office manager who supervises a team of clerks. There is currently no Tech IV, team leader, or other deputy/assistant manager position in either branch office. With this staffing configuration and the overall understaffing of the Motor Vehicle Department, which is discussed in more detail later in this section, the managers in the branch offices sometimes end up performing day‐to‐day duties and front line coverage along with the clerk staff, which the project team observed during site visits. Requiring branch managers to cover the front line and wait on customers decreases the amount of time they have to perform their other 2

This span of control ratio will vary when temporary Elections employees are hired during election season.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

managerial duties and carry out their responsibilities as branch office managers. This staffing configuration also means that Fort Lupton and Del Camino clerks with questions or in need of guidance do not have a Tech IV onsite available to assist them, as the Greeley Motor Vehicle, Recording, and Elections Departments do. Motor Vehicle Tech IV employees in Greeley will drive to the satellite offices when coverage is needed in Fort Lupton and Del Camino, which decreases their efficiency and reduces the number of Tech IVs available to assist onsite in Greeley. A review of the organization structures of other Colorado counties that participated in the benchmarking survey showed that, of the respondents, Clerk and Recorder’s Offices with branch locations generally have a team lead or assistant manager position to support the branch manager unless the office has very few employees. 

In Adams County, each branch office has a branch manager and an assistant manager.

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In Boulder County, each branch office has a branch manager and a lead administrative technician.

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In El Paso County, each branch office except for one has a branch supervisor and an assistant branch supervisor.

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In Jefferson County, each branch office except for one has a branch manager and a Motor Vehicle supervisor.

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In Larimer County the organization structure is somewhat unusual in that some branches have more than one vehicle licensing coordinator, both of whom report to the assistant manager. Although there is not a manager‐team lead subordinate relationship in Larimer County, the branch offices do have more than one position of seniority supervising the technicians, except for one branch office that has only two employees (the coordinator and a specialist).

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Mesa County does not have branch offices.

Given the understaffing of the Motor Vehicle Department in all three offices, which is discussed in depth below, we recommend adding one additional employee at each branch office. Based on our review of the organizational structures of other counties, on‐site observations in the branch offices, and discussions with Motor Vehicle employees, we recommend that these additional positions be added as Tech IV employees, rather than Tech III employees, to provide needed lead workers in addition to needed additional staff.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

Recommendation 1.3: The Clerk and Recorder should request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, one Tech IV position in the Del Camino branch office and one Tech IV position in the Fort Lupton branch office to serve as team leaders and assist the branch office managers in running the branch locations. To address understaffing in the Motor Vehicle Department, which is discussed in the following section, the positions should be new positions rather than reclassifications or substitutions of Tech III positions. This recommendation will ultimately increase branch office staffing levels by one hire at each location.

The Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office is Understaffed Compared to Other Counties To investigate appropriate staffing levels in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, the project team analyzed data collected from the Big 10 Counties survey,3 which reports the number of full time equivalent employees (FTEs) per Department (Motor Vehicle, Elections, or Recording) and standardized measures of workload. To control for differences in workload and to allow comparisons of staffing levels across counties, the project team calculated the number of Motor Vehicle employees per 100,000 vehicle registrations, the number of Recording employees per 100,000 documents recorded, and the number of Elections employees per 100,000 residents. See Appendix C for further details on the analysis and for tables of figures. The project team noted that the number of vehicle registrations reported in the 2016 survey was the actual number of registrations for 2015. Therefore, the years referenced in this section are lagged by one year (in other words, references to the 2016 survey will reflect actual numbers from 2015).

As noted in the Introduction to this report, the Big 10 Counties survey is a collection of data produced by ten large counties in Colorado.

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Motor Vehicle Compared with other Big 10 Counties, Weld County has consistently had the fewest Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations every year since 2005, as shown in Exhibit 1.3 below.

Exhibit 1.3: Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 Vehicle Registrations, Big 10 Counties

Source: Big 10 Counties survey

The average number of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 registrations across the other nine counties other than Weld since 2005 is 14.59, and the average across the other nine counties reported in 2016 only was 14.63, as shown in Exhibit 1.4 below. As reported in 2016, Weld County had 6.1 Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations. Exhibit 1.4 below presents the underlying data for Exhibit 1.3.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

Exhibit 1.4: Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 Vehicle Registrations, Big 10 Counties County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo

15.1 15.1 20.7 16.3 15.5 16.8 12.4

14.1 17.5 20.6 15.6 16.6 16.4 13.1 12.1 10.5

14.9 15.6 20.2 15.0 15.6 7.7 11.8 11.8 12.4

16.3 16.0 19.6 16.1 14.8 14.9 12.9 12.7 13.1

18.6 15.9 19.6 15.8 17.6 15.0 12.7 12.3 12.8

17.1 16.5 19.5 15.6 15.8 14.9 12.7 11.5 12.9

20.4 15.6 19.3 12.1 15.7 14.9 12.2 9.8

18.6 13.9 19.1 11.9 14.6 14.2 11.1 9.9 11.0

17.9 13.8 18.7 12.9 11.0 13.8 11.1 11.0 14.2

13.6 16.2 18.3 11.1 14.2 13.6 11.2 10.9

13.4 15.3 17.9 14.1 13.8 13.2 11.0 10.8 12.7

15.7 17.7 17.5 13.6 15.0 13.9 11.7 10.7 15.9

9‐County avg.

16.0

15.2

13.9

15.2

15.6

15.2

15.0

13.8

13.6

14.6

7.7

7.3

6.7

6.6

6.5

6.8

7.0

6.0

6.5

6.4

6.7

6.1

Weld

Source: Big 10 Counties survey

Recording Compared with other Big 10 Counties, the Recording Department staffing per 100,000 documents recorded in Weld County has consistently been lower than average. As reported in 2016, Weld County had the fewest Recording FTEs per 100,000 documents recorded of the counties included in the Big 10 survey, as shown in Exhibit 1.5 below.

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Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels

Exhibit 1.5: Recording FTEs per 100,000 Documents Recorded, Big 10 Counties

Source: Big 10 Counties survey

The average number of Recording FTEs per 100,000 documents recorded across the other nine counties since 2005 is 13.01, and the average across the other nine counties reported in 2016 only was 13.5, as shown in Exhibit 1.6 below. As reported in 2016, Weld County had 7.2 Recording FTEs per 100,000 documents recorded. Exhibit 1.6 below presents the underlying data for Exhibit 1.5.

Exhibit 1.6: Recording FTEs per 100,000 Documents Recorded, Big 10 Counties County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo

7.7 8.1 13.0 6.5 7.0 8.2 11.9

8.2 10.5 15.5 8.4 8.7 13.2 17.0 17.5 15.5

8.9 10.6 18.5 9.5 8.5 15.4 20.4 17.5 13.0

18.8 9.7 19.1 9.4 9.1 15.6 16.5 11.4 15.6

15.7 12.6 8.3 20.3 17.5 10.8 8.8 9.3 8.0 18.9 16.9 19.4 18.8 11.2 14.8 14.9

9.3 9.5 19.3 8.4 8.9 18.3 20.2 14.9

9.0 10.0 18.6 9.4 9.1 14.3 19.5 15.8 7.0

8.2 8.8 15.6 7.8 8.3 12.1 19.5 13.9 17.3

8.2 9.1 16.1 7.9 8.5 11.5 14.9 15.2

9.3 11.4 19.9 10.2 10.7 15.2 15.8 18.5 19.3

8.6 9.4 16.4 10.5 9.2 11.6 12.5 16.4 26.9

9‐County avg.

8.9

12.7

13.6

13.9

14.8

13.5

13.6

12.5

12.4

11.4

14.5

13.5

Weld

9.5

6.3

11.7

12.2

14.1

11.2

11.1

10.4

9.5

10.3

7.2

Source: Big 10 Counties survey and HMR calculations

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Elections As shown in Exhibit 1.7 below, Elections Department staffing per 100,000 residents in Weld County has consistently been lower than average compared to the other nine counties included in the Big 10 Counties survey. As reported in 2016, Weld County had the second lowest number of Elections FTEs per 100,000 residents.

Exhibit 1.7: Election FTEs per 100,000 Residents, Big 10 Counties

Source: Big 10 Counties survey Note: this chart compares FTEs to total population, not the number of registered voters or active voters, which can fluctuate from year to year depending on the election cycle. Comparing across counties assumes that the ratio of voters to total population is relatively similar across counties.

The average number of Elections FTEs per 100,000 residents across the other nine Big 10 counties since 2005 is 3.24, and the average across the other nine counties in 2016 only was 3.32, as shown in Exhibit 1.8 below. As reported in 2016, Weld County had 1.7 Elections FTEs per 100,000 residents. Exhibit 1.8 below presents the underlying data for Exhibit 1.7.

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Exhibit 1.8: Election FTEs per 100,000 Residents, Big 10 Counties County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo

2.2 2.5 2.2 3.8 2.0 2.8 5.4

2.4 2.5 3.1 3.2 3.1 2.8 4.2 3.8 4.5

2.6 2.5 3.4 3.1 2.9 3.0 5.0 3.6 4.5

2.5 2.6 3.6 3.4 2.8 3.2 4.9 3.7 4.6

3.1 2.5 3.2 3.3 2.7 3.1 4.8 3.5 5.1

2.9 2.2 3.2 3.4 2.2 3.5 4.7 2.7 4.4

2.9 2.6 3.1 3.1 1.9 3.5 3.4 2.0 5.0

2.8 2.5 3.5 3.6 1.7 3.0 3.4 2.0 5.0

3.0 2.5 3.4 3.6 1.5 3.0 3.3 2.0 5.0

3.2 2.4 3.4 3.5 1.5 2.9 3.6 3.3 5.6

2.9 2.4 3.8 3.5 1.5 2.7 3.7 3.3 5.6

3.1 2.4 4.0 3.8 1.5 2.7 3.6 3.3 5.5

9‐County avg.

3.0

3.3

3.4

3.5

3.2

3.1

3.0

3.3

Weld

1.7

2.1

2.0

1.9

1.7

Source: Big 10 Counties survey Note: this table compares FTEs to total population, not the number of registered voters or active voters, which can fluctuate from year to year depending on the election cycle. Comparing across counties assumes that the ratio of registered voters to total population is relatively similar across counties.

Employees Describe the Office as Understaffed with Heavy Workloads The survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees conducted by the project team asked respondents to describe staffing and workload in their departments of the office. When asked about staffing levels, 70 percent of survey respondents reported that they would describe their department as significantly understaffed or slightly understaffed.

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Exhibit 1.9: Survey Results: Staff perception of staffing levels

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 30 respondents)

As shown in Exhibit 1.10 below, 50 percent of respondents reported that the workload in their department is “very heavy – so heavy we are often falling behind.” Another 37 percent reported workload that is “heavy – we are keeping up, but it would be nice to get a break from time to time.” Only 13 percent reported a moderate workload, and no respondent reported a light workload.

Exhibit 1.10: Survey Results: Staff perception of workload How would you describe the workload in your division?

Very heavy – so heavy we are often falling behind

50%

Heavy – we are keeping up, but it would be nice to get a break from time to time

37%

Moderate – we are busy, but there are times when we look for other things to do

13%

Light – we often have very little to do

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 30 respondents)

In focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations with the project team, Del Camino, Fort Lupton, and Greeley Motor Vehicle employees in particular described understaffing in their offices and stated that

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workloads were heavy and, in some cases, increasing. More information on workload is presented in Section 2: Work Flow and Alignment.

Motor Vehicle Overtime Increased Between 2014 and 2016 The Clerk and Recorder’s Office has a policy of serving all customers in the building up to closing time (or close to closing time in the satellite offices), which often requires staff overtime to process waiting customers. In addition, the Clerk and Recorder’s Office has a policy of processing all title work, including titles that come in by mail, before temporary permits expire (that is, within 60 days of purchase). This policy sometimes requires mandatory overtime for all staff. As shown in Exhibit 1.11 below, the amount and cost of overtime at the Clerk and Recorder’s office has increased since 2014. In focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations, many employees expressed dissatisfaction with the amount of mandatory overtime.

Exhibit 1.11: Overtime Actuals, all Offices and Departments, 2014‐2016 Overtime 2014 2015 2016 Hours 4,682 5,048 7,145 Actual Expenditures $151,125 $162,239 $183,857 Source: Weld County financial management system data

Although Exhibit 1.11 contains data for all three Clerk and Recorder departments, the overwhelming majority (95 percent of the three years) of overtime expenses were incurred in the Motor Vehicle Department. The increase in overtime from 2014 to 2016 occurred even though the number of budgeted staff in the Motor Vehicle Department increased by 4.0 FTEs between 2014 and 2015. However, as shown below in Exhibit 1.12, due to employee turnover, these new positions were not fully occupied during the year. As a result, there was only an effective increase of 1.0 FTEs in the Motor Vehicle Department between 2014 and 2016.

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Exhibit 1.12: Motor Vehicle Budgeted vs. Actual Positions, 2014‐2017 Budgeted FTE, full‐time

2014 35

2015 39

2016 39

2017 41

Total Budgeted FTE

36.50

40.50

42.00

Actual FTEs

37.96

38.71

38.96

41.50**

Budgeted FTE, part‐time*

Source: Weld County Human Resources personnel data and Final Adopted Budgets * According to the Finance Director, part‐time positions may be filled on a full‐time basis, however the Clerk and Recorder stated these positions typically are only filled part‐time (0.5 FTE). ** As of July 2017

The Board of County Commissioners approved an additional expansion of 1.5 FTEs in the Motor Vehicle Department in the 2016 mid‐year budget, increasing the total budgeted FTEs from 40.5 to 42.0. According to the Clerk and Recorder, all 41 full‐time positions and one of the two part‐time positions were filled as of July 27, 2017. The additional staff capacity appears to have had an impact on the amount of overtime. Actual overtime expenditures in 2017 were $69,061 through July 27, 2017. Based on the year to date spending, we project the Motor Vehicle Department’s 2017 overtime expenditures to be approximately $118,000, which would be approximately $65,000 or 36 percent less than 2016 overtime expenditures. Recommendation 1.4: The Board of County Commissioners and the Clerk and Recorder should develop an overtime expenditure target to maintain service levels and minimize negative impact of overtime on staff, and budget the appropriate amount of staff to achieve that target.

The Motor Vehicle Department’s Clerk Function is Understaffed The Motor Vehicle Department’s clerk function appears to be understaffed based on our survey and interviews with Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees, comparisons of staffing levels and workload at other Colorado counties, and analysis of overtime expenditures. As discussed above, as reported in the 2016 Big 10 Counties survey (reflecting actual 2015 figures) Weld County had 6.1 Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations; actual figures for 2016, shown in Exhibit 1.10 below, were 5.8 FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations. The average number of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations of the other nine counties included in the 2016 Big 10 Counties survey was 14.6. The project team determined that the Weld County Motor Vehicle Department would have needed to add 59 staff to the actual 2016 staffing, or a 151 percent increase

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over current staffing levels, to 98 FTEs to achieve the average FTE per 100,000 registrations of the other nine surveyed counties in 2016. This calculation is shown in Exhibit 1.13 below.

Exhibit 1.13: Motor Vehicle Staffing Ratios in 2016 Weld Motor Vehicle employees (full‐time) Weld vehicle registrations (submitted to State) Weld Motor Vehicle employees per 100,000 registrations Average Motor Vehicle employees per 100,000 transactions in other 9 counties a Number of Motor Vehicle employees required to achieve 9‐county average in 2016 b

39 671,545 5.8 14.6 98

Source: Big 10 Counties survey and HMR calculations a Average is of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations in Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Mesa, and Pueblo Counties as reported in 2016. The median ratio of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations for these counties as reported in 2016 is 15.0. b Backout calculation: [(98 employees/671,545 registrations)*100,000] = 14.6

Rather than an immediate and dramatic increase in staffing to align Weld’s Motor Vehicle staffing ratio with those of its nine peer counties, we recommend a phased increase to staffing levels in the Motor Vehicle Department, which will allow the Clerk and Recorder and Board of County Commissioners to assess the impact of additional staff on workload, customer satisfaction, and employee morale. Information technology enhancements could also improve the efficiency of existing staff and reduce some of the need for additional new positions going forward. Therefore, in addition to the four new management and team lead positions in Recommendations 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 above, we recommend that the Clerk and Recorder hire three Office Technician II/III clerks in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department. These additional clerks would allow the Clerk and Recorder to staff the mail processing center, discussed more in Section 2: Work Flow and Alignment, or to have additional front line staff to reduce wait times for in‐person customers. Recommendation 1.5: The Clerk and Recorder’s Office should request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, three additional Motor Vehicle Tech IIs or IIIs in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Office to address the understaffing. The Clerk and Recorder’s Office should monitor workload and the use of overtime to assess whether additional employees are needed once the new hires have been fully integrated into the office.

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Employee Morale has Room to Improve, Particularly in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department Motor Vehicle Respondents in Greeley Report Higher Levels of Dissatisfaction than Respondents in Other Departments or Offices. When asked about satisfaction with their jobs in the past year in the survey of Clerk and Recorder employees, 43 percent of respondents reported feeling very satisfied or satisfied and 33 percent of respondents reported feeling dissatisfied or very dissatisfied. The remaining 23 percent reported feeling neither satisfied nor dissatisfied.

Exhibit 1.14: Survey Results: Satisfaction with employment

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 30 respondents)

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As shown in Exhibit 1.15 below, respondents in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department reported higher levels of dissatisfaction and lower levels of satisfaction than respondents in other Departments. When asked about satisfaction with their jobs in the past year, 35 percent of respondents in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department reported feeling very satisfied or satisfied, compared with 54 percent of respondents in other Departments who reported feeling very satisfied or satisfied. 41 percent of respondents in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department, compared with 23 percent of respondents in other Departments, reported feeling dissatisfied or very dissatisfied.

Exhibit 1.15: Survey Results: Satisfaction with employment Greeley Motor Vehicle vs. other Departments

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 30 respondents)

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As shown in Exhibit 1.16 below, although 43 percent of all respondents reported feeling very satisfied or satisfied with their jobs overall, only 28 percent reported feeling satisfied with their work/life balance. Thirty‐eight percent of all respondents reported feeling dissatisfied with their work‐life balance.

Exhibit 1.16: Survey Results: Work/life balance

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

In focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations, employees stated that staffing levels, overtime, and poor communication caused additional stress and contributed to low morale. Employees who work in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department also stated that office politics, gossip, and favoritism contributed to low morale. Our recommendations to improve morale include Recommendations 1.1 through 1.5, which address staffing levels and overtime; Recommendations 1.6 and 1.7 (presented below), which address favoritism; and Recommendation 3.1 (presented in Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making) which addresses communication.

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Employees Report Favoritism and Vindictive or Retaliatory Actions As noted in the introduction to our report, we conducted a survey of Clerk and Recorder staff as part of our fieldwork. Of the 56 total invitations sent, 30 employees submitted completed responses for a 53.6 percent response rate. Participation in the survey was optional and employees self‐selected in to the group of respondents. The group of respondents is not a representative sample because it was not drawn randomly from the group of all Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees. Survey results should be interpreted only as a representation of the opinions of approximately half of the employees in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The percentages presented of the respondents are not necessarily representative of all employees. The full employee survey results can be found in Appendix A.

Favoritism As shown in Exhibit 1.17 below, only 24 percent of all respondents reported that they had never been negatively affected by or witnessed favoritism at work. Sixty‐two percent of respondents reported witnessing or being affected negatively by favoritism regularly or several times. In total, 76 percent of respondents reported that favoritism occurs in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

Exhibit 1.17: Survey Results: Staff views on favoritism

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

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In focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations with the project team, employees described examples of favoritism when some employees were given preferential treatment with regards to the following: 

Enforcement of dress code: o



For example, some employees wear jeans or nose rings without consequences while others are reprimanded for the same behavior.

Time off approval: o

For example, some employees are allowed to flex their time (e.g., leave early for a medical appointment after taking a shorter lunch) while others are not; some employees are allowed to call in sick without consequences while others are penalized for it.

These situations were not observed by the project team and are reported here as examples of how favoritism or the perception of favoritism may manifest, not as a confirmation that it has occurred.

Fear of Retaliation As shown in Exhibit 1.18 below, only 31 percent of respondents reported that they had never experienced or witnessed vindictive or retaliatory actions at work. Fifty‐eight percent of respondents, on the other hand, reported witnessing or experiencing retaliation regularly or several times. In total, 69 percent of employees reported that vindictive and retaliatory actions occur in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

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Exhibit 1.18: Survey Results: Experienced workplace retaliation

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

As shown in Exhibit 1.19 below, 59 percent of respondents report that they are afraid of vindictive or retaliatory actions at work. Only 20 percent report that they are not afraid of vindictive or retaliatory actions at work. Employees also described fear of retaliation in focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations.

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Exhibit 1.19: Survey Results: Fear of workplace retaliation

Source HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

Within the scope of this performance review it was not possible to measure whether favoritism and retaliatory actions occur to the extent described to the project team and reflected in the survey responses. However, the topics were raised so frequently and universally during conversations with staff that corrective action to address the office environment appears necessary regardless of the extent of its actual occurrence. An office environment of favoritism and retaliation, either real or perceived, may negatively affect employee morale and job performance and contribute to higher employee turnover and lower job satisfaction. Favoritism and retaliation may also create a liability for the County.

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Recommendation 1.6: The Clerk and Recorder should immediately ask the Department of Human Resources and the County Attorney to conduct a training for all management‐level staff on fairness and equal treatment, fostering employee empowerment and community, and how to avoid even the appearance of favoritism. The training should be mandatory, and all managers, the Chief Deputy, and the Clerk and Recorder should attend and participate in the training. Recommendation 1.7: The Clerk and Recorder should make policy changes that address the staff concerns identified in the survey and ask the Department of Human Resources to conduct an anonymous follow up survey of staff each year regarding favoritism and fear of retaliation to assess the improvement of management‐level staff on this issue. Results should be presented to the Board of County Commissioners.

Employee Turnover in Motor Vehicle and Recording Departments Exceeds the Countywide Turnover Rate In interviews and focus groups, some staff members expressed concerns about employee turnover at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. We reviewed Weld County Human Resources data to assess the number of separations of regular (not temporary) employees against the number of budgeted FTEs that year and compared those figures to the countywide turnover rate. As shown below in Exhibit 1.20, the Motor Vehicle and Recording Departments’ turnover rate exceeded the countywide turnover rate in 2015 and in 2016. The turnover rates Exhibits 1.20 and 1.21 include retirements and terminations.

Exhibit 1.20: Clerk and Recorder Turnover Rates Department Motor Vehicle Recording Elections Weld County Average

2014 16% 0% 0% 14.8%

2015 22% 27% 0% 14.7%

2016 12% 9% 0% 6.1%

Source: Weld County Human Resources data and final adopted budgeted for 2014 – 2016

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Exhibit 1.21: Clerk and Recorder Separations* Department Motor Vehicle Recording Elections Total Separations Total Budgeted FTEs

2014 6 0 6 36.5

2015 9 3 0 12 40.5

2016 5 1 0 6 40.5

Total 20 5 0 25 N/A

Source: Weld County Human Resources data * Separation data includes 1 Motor Vehicle and 1 Recording retirement in 2015 and 1 Motor Vehicle retirement in 2016.

As shown above in Exhibits 1.20 and 1.21, the turnover rate for the Motor Vehicle Department spiked in 2015, when there was a change in administration. However, the turnover rate for the Motor Vehicle Department was lower in 2016 than it was in 2014. Similarly, the turnover rate for the Recording Department spiked in 2015, but then was significantly lowered in 2016. One employee separated from the Recording Department in 2016 compared to none in 2014. Although the turnover rates in Motor Vehicle and Recording were higher than the countywide rate in both 2015 and 2016, the actual number of separations in 2016, six, was the same as the number of separations in 2014.

The Most Common Reasons Employees Want to Leave the Clerk and Recorder’s Office The survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees asked respondents how long they want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. As shown in Exhibit 1.22 below, two‐thirds of respondents indicated that they want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office for more than a year, while one‐third indicated that they want to leave within the year.

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Exhibit 1.22: Survey Results: How long do you want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office?

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 30 respondents)

Those respondents who indicated that they want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office were then directed to a follow up page that asked about the reasons they wanted to continue working in the office. The results presented below in Exhibit 1.23 have been ranked in order from most selected to least selected.

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Exhibit 1.23: Survey Results: Reasons for wanting to continue to work at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office If you want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, please select the reason(s) (check all that apply): The work I do is fulfilling I have a good work/life balance I can’t find a better compensation package elsewhere I feel supported by management I like the office culture I have opportunities to grow in my role Other I don’t want to apply for other jobs

50% 45% 45% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10%

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 20 respondents)

Those respondents who indicated that they want to leave the Clerk and Recorder’s Office within the year were then directed to a follow up page that asked about the reasons they wanted to leave. The results presented below in Exhibit 1.24 have been ranked in order from most selected to least selected.

Exhibit 1.24: Survey Results: Reasons for wanting to leave the Office within the next year If you want to leave within a year, please select the reason(s) (check all that apply): There is little or no opportunity for advancement The job takes away too much of my personal or family time Office politics are uncomfortable I can find a better compensation package elsewhere Other The workload is too much for me I no longer care for this type of work I am planning to retire Customer interactions are too demanding

70% 50% 40% 40% 30% 20% 20% 20% 10%

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 10 respondents)

As shown above, the two top reasons staff plan to separate are because: (1) there is little or no opportunity for advancement and (2) the job takes too much personal time. The demand on personal time is likely due to mandatory overtime. These results suggest that an organizational restructuring that provides ambitious staff the opportunity to advance and that minimizes overtime could reduce future turnover.

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Turnover Should Be Minimized Turnover impedes the effectiveness of any organization. It requires managers to set aside time to recruit and train new employees. When positions are vacant, daily transactions must be distributed among fewer employees, causing exhaustion, backlog, and more overtime. New employees are often not as efficient as veteran staff and require more management attention. Recommendations 1.1 through 1.5 regarding an increase in the number of Office Tech IIs/IIIs, overtime, and the creation of more senior positions will help address the concerns of employees who feel overworked and do not see a path for professional development within the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. Reducing turnover and keeping these ambitious and hardworking employees will make the Clerk and Recorder’s Office more efficient and more responsive to public needs.

Conclusions A review of staffing in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office revealed:



Other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado with branch locations have a motor vehicle coordinator position to manage and coordinate the offices.



Other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices with branch locations usually have an assistant manager, team lead, or other second‐in‐command position at branch locations in addition to the office manager and the clerks.



The Greeley Motor Vehicle Department has had between four and five Tech IV positions since 2013. The current staffing of three Tech IV positions in Greeley is insufficient and there are not enough Tech IV employees to support the clerks.



Employees feel that the office is understaffed and the workload is heavy.



The office is understaffed compared to Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in other Colorado counties.



Overtime expenditures increased from 2014 through 2016, but are projected to decrease in 2017 as a result of increased staffing levels.



More respondents are satisfied than dissatisfied with their jobs overall, but Motor Vehicle respondents in Greeley report higher dissatisfaction than respondents in other departments or offices. More respondents are dissatisfied than satisfied with their work‐life balance.



High percentages of respondents report favoritism and vindictive or retaliatory actions at work.



The Motor Vehicle Department’s employee turnover rate was higher than the countywide rate in all three years reviewed, 2014‐2016.

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

Among survey respondents who want to leave the Clerk and Recorder’s Office within the year, the most common reasons cited were a lack of opportunity for advancement and too high a demand on personal or family time.

Staffing levels, the use of overtime, employee morale, and turnover rates are all interrelated and any change in one of these elements will affect the overall staffing status quo in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. As shown in Exhibit 1.25 below, the effects or “symptoms” of inadequate staffing (for example, low morale) may become a cause of further turnover and more inadequate staffing, creating a feedback loop in which the first element influences the second element, which in turn influences the first and causes a circular cycle of cause and effect. (For example, low staffing levels may cause higher use of mandatory overtime, which may affect employee morale and contribute to high turnover rates, which in turn worsen staffing levels.)

Exhibit 1.25: Feedback Loop of Staff Turnover and Morale

Therefore, our recommendations seek to address staffing in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office as a whole.

Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 1.1

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, a motor vehicle branch coordinator or supervisor.

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1.2

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, an additional Tech IV position in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department to restore the office organization to four Tech IV/Team Lead positions. The position should be a new position, not a reclassification or substitution of a Tech III position. This recommendation will ultimately increase Greeley Motor Vehicle staffing levels by one hire.

1.3

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, one Tech IV position in the Del Camino branch office and one Tech IV position in the Fort Lupton branch office to serve as team leaders and assist the branch office managers in running the branch locations. To address understaffing in the Motor Vehicle Department, the positions should be new positions rather than reclassifications or substitutions of Tech III positions. This recommendation will ultimately increase branch office staffing levels by one hire at each location.

1.4

Develop, with the Board of County Commissioners, an overtime expenditure target to maintain service levels and minimize negative impact of overtime on staff, and budget the appropriate amount of staff to achieve that target.

1.5

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, three additional Motor Vehicle Tech IIs or IIIs in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Office to address the understaffing. The Clerk and Recorder’s Office should monitor workload and the use of overtime to assess whether additional employees are needed once the new hires have been fully integrated into the office.

1.6

Immediately ask the Department of Human Resources and the County Attorney to conduct a training for all management‐level staff on fairness and equal treatment, fostering employee empowerment and community, and how to avoid even the appearance of favoritism. The training should be mandatory and all managers, the Chief Deputy, and the Clerk and Recorder should attend and participate in the training.

1.7

Make policy changes that address the staff concerns identified in the survey and ask the Department of Human Resources to conduct an anonymous follow up survey of staff each year regarding favoritism and fear of retaliation to assess the improvement of management‐level staff on this issue. Results should be presented to the Board of County Commissioners.

Costs and Benefits Costs The most significant and concrete cost of these recommendations will be the cost of the salaries and benefits for the new positions in Recommendations 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, and 1.5. Exhibit 1.23 below presents data from the 2017 salary model forecast provided by the Finance Director (using February 2016 pay data) for each position. An exact figure cannot be calculated because it would depend on the step of the

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new hire, which determines their base salary. For the Tech III and Tech IV positions, averages of the total County costs were used. For the Motor Vehicle Coordinator position, which would technically be a new position in between the office managers and the Chief Deputy in the organizational hierarchy, the midpoint figure between the Chief Deputy cost and the Elections and Recording Manager costs was used. Finally, these figures are 2017 forecasts based on 2016 pay data. If these positions are hired in 2018, actual annual costs will be slightly higher to account for any Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs). In addition to the estimates below, there will be other costs to the County in the form of employee time involved in recruiting and hiring these recommended positions.

Exhibit 1.26: Estimated Annual Cost of Hiring Recommendations, Using 2017 Forecast Figures Rec.

Position

1.1 1.2 1.3 1.5

Motor Vehicle Coordinator b Tech IV (Greeley) c Tech IV (Branch offices) c Tech III d Total

Approximate 2017 Cost of Position to County a $105,174 66,873 66,873 56,412

Number of Total Cost of New Hires Recommendation 1 $105,174 1 66,873 2 133,746 3 169,236 7 $475,029

Based on the 2017 Salary Model Base 2.5% COLA forecast using 2016 data. Total cost includes base pay, retirement, FICA, Medical, Life, and Disability insurance. b Based on the midpoint between the total Chief Deputy cost and the total Elections/Recording Manager cost. c Based on the average total cost of a Tech IV position. d Based on the average total cost of a Tech III position.

The other cost of these recommendations will be to the Department of Human Resources to provide training for managers on favoritism and to conduct follow up surveys with staff in the form of staff time and office materials as well as to the Clerk and Recorder’s Office in the form of staff time while employees attend or participate in these recommendations.

Benefits An increase in staffing levels will lead to a reduction in, but not the elimination of, overtime costs, particularly if the new Tech III positions are used to staff and implement the Processing Center as recommended in Recommendation 2.1 in Section 2: Work Flow and Alignment, which may further reduce the need for mandatory overtime. As discussed above, a straight‐line projection of overtime expenditures in 2017 based on actual expenditures through July 2017 yields an estimated year total of $118,390 in overtime expenditures in 2017, which is lower than actual overtime expenditures of $171,783 in 2016. This projected decrease in overtime expenditures in 2017 corresponds with an increase of approximately 2.5 actual FTEs at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office in 2017. Based on these trends, we would expect overtime expenditures to further decrease, though not be completely

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eliminated, with the additional recommended hires. The new Motor Vehicle Coordinator and Tech IV positions will likely lead to an increase in efficiency in all three offices, allowing staff to process transactions faster and further reducing the need for mandatory overtime in the Motor Vehicle Department. Hiring these seven employees will enable the Clerk and Recorder’s Office to keep pace with the increasing population and associated workload and will bring Weld County more in line with current practice reported by other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado. Enabling the Clerk and Recorder’s Office to keep up with the increasing population and associated workload should be partially offset by an increase the County’s General Fund revenues. Of the fees collected by the Motor Vehicle Department, a portion goes to the State and a portion goes to the County’s General Fund. Exhibit 1.27 below presents the Motor Vehicle General Fund fee revenue since 2014.

Exhibit 1.26: Motor Vehicle General Fund Fee Revenue Year 2014 2015 2016 2017

Revenue $3,647,246 $4,062,864 $4,243,507 $2,168,659 (partial*)

Source: Weld County Director of Finance * year to date as of July 31, 2017

Along with an increase in Motor Vehicle transactions and population, as discussed earlier in this section, the General Fund revenue from Motor Vehicle fees has increased since 2014. With strong population growth in Weld County projected to continue, the County should continue to see an increase in General Fund revenues going forward,4 which would offset some of the costs associated with these recommended new positions. Addressing favoritism at the management level, combined with follow up surveys conducted by the Department of Human Resources, will allow the Clerk and Recorder and Human Resources to ameliorate and monitor favoritism in the office going forward, improving the office environment and reducing any liability of the County. Together with additional staffing resources and a reduction in mandatory overtime, these recommendations should help improve employee morale and decrease turnover, thereby increasing employee efficiency and seniority and reducing the cost to the County of staff time involved in interviewing and hiring new employees.

The fee structure is based on the age of the vehicle. Therefore, in a recession when transactions continue to increase but new car purchases decline, revenues could also decline.

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Taken together, this set of recommendations comprehensively addresses the negative feedback loop shown in Exhibit 1.25 and should contribute to a more efficient and cost‐effective Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

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Work Flow and Alignment Weld County’s population has increased by 56 percent since 2000 and is projected to grow even faster through 2030. These new residents have increased the workload of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, particularly in the Motor Vehicle Department, through increases in vehicle registrations, voting, and property transactions. Wait times for typical motor vehicle transactions in the Greeley office average approximately 23 minutes, often frustrating the public. While the budgeted full time equivalent positions (FTEs) in the Motor Vehicle Department have increased since 2014, the increase in transaction volume has meant that the workload distribution among staff has remained unchanged. Although the Department of Information Technology conducted a work flow review in February 2017, which recommended a dedicated mail and telephone processing center, the Clerk and Recorder has not been able to implement either due to lack of staff. Compared to nine peer counties in Colorado, all three Clerk and Recorder functions (Motor Vehicle, Recording, and Elections) are understaffed. Separately, our review found public communication regarding Recording fees was incorrect and poorly organized. In addition, the training of new Motor Vehicle employees could be made more effective by emphasizing practical on‐the‐job training, such as computer skills and shadowing current employees.

As discussed in Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels, in our survey of Clerk and Recorder staff, 70 percent of all respondents rated their Department as “significantly” or “slightly” understaffed. This perception of understaffing is consistent with measures of workload, which is described below.

Several Measures Indicate an Increase in Workload Weld County’s Population has Increased by 56 Percent since 2000, with Strong Growth Projected to Continue The Colorado State Demography Office, within the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, makes county‐ wide and state population estimates and projections. The Office’s most recent figures, presented in Exhibit 2.1 below, were produced in October 2016. The Demography Office estimates that between 2000 and 2015, the population of Weld County grew by approximately 56 percent, from 183,074 in 2000 to 284,879 in 2015. Weld County had the third‐highest growth in population of all counties in Colorado during that time, behind only Douglas County (78

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percent) and the City and County of Broomfield (68 percent). In Colorado overall, the population grew by 26 percent from 2000 to 2015. Exhibit 2.1 below presents the estimated growth rate from 2000 to 2015 for the Big 10 Counties in Colorado, plus the statewide growth rate.

Exhibit 2.1: Estimated Population Growth in Big 10 Counties and Statewide from 2000 to 2015 Estimated Growth 2000‐2015 26% 78% 56% 40% 32% 30% 28% 27% 16% 15% 7%

Jurisdiction Colorado Douglas County Weld County Adams County Larimer County El Paso County Arapahoe County Mesa County Boulder County Pueblo County Jefferson County

Source: Colorado State Demography Office, Colorado Department of Local Affairs; estimates as of October 2016

The Demography Office projects that the population of Weld County will grow by approximately 62 percent from 2015 to 2030, which is the second highest projected growth of all counties in Colorado during that time period, behind only Elbert County (94 percent). Exhibit 2.2 below presents the projected growth rate from 2015 to 2030 for the Big 10 Counties in Colorado as well as the statewide growth rate.

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Exhibit 2.2: Projected Population Growth in Big 10 Counties and Statewide from 2015 to 2030 Projected Growth 2015‐2030 27% 62% 35% 31% 30% 29% 26% 24% 19% 16% 15%

Jurisdiction Colorado Weld County Adams County Douglas County Arapahoe County Larimer County El Paso County Mesa County Boulder County Pueblo County Jefferson County

Source: Colorado State Demography Office, Colorado Department of Local Affairs; projections as of October 2016

An increase in population will cause an increase in workload at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. New households must register their vehicles, may vote in annual elections, and may purchase or sell property. All of this activity increases the workload of the existing Clerk and Recorder staff.

Motor Vehicle Transactions have Increased Since 2014 The Clerk and Recorder’s largest function, the Motor Vehicle Department, includes the registration and titling of vehicles in Weld County. As shown below in Exhibit 2.3, the number of vehicle transactions has increased from 602,536 in 2014 to 671,545 in 2016, or 11.5 percent. Using data from January through May 2017, we project a total of 691,008 vehicle transactions in 2017, or an increase of 14.7 percent from 2014.

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Exhibit 2.3: Vehicle Transactions

Source: Clerk and Recorder vehicle transaction data * HMR projection based on transaction data through May 2017

The data in Exhibit 2.3 above does not include any backlog transactions (i.e., transactions that are under review, but incomplete or mail that has not been fully processed). Although the budgeted full time equivalent positions (FTEs) in the Motor Vehicle Department have increased since 2014, the increase in transaction volume has meant that the workload distribution among staff has remained unchanged, as shown below in Exhibit 2.4. This workload status quo makes it difficult to pioneer new operational initiatives, train employees, or minimize overtime and other impacts to work/life balance.

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Exhibit 2.4: Motor Transactions per FTE are Relatively Stable Despite Staff Increases

Source: Clerk and Recorder vehicle transaction data and final adopted budgets * HMR projection based on transaction data through May 2017

Customer Wait Times for Greeley Motor Vehicle Transactions are Typically 24 minutes The Clerk and Recorder installed a queuing system, NemoQ, in the fall of 2016 to manage the retail traffic in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office. The NemoQ system allows the Clerk and Recorder to organize walk‐ins, direct them to the appropriate clerks, and display current wait times. We reviewed NemoQ transaction data captured between September 2016 and April 2017. Exhibit 2.5 below shows the transaction types, number of customers served, average wait times, and average serving times during this period.

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Exhibit 2.5: In‐Person Greeley Motor Vehicle Transaction Data Sept. 2016 – April 2017 Incoming customers

Unattended Customers*

Number of served customers

% of incoming customers served

Average Waiting time (minutes)

Average Service time (minutes)

Registration Renewal

46,734

5,488

41,246

88%

26:06

04:42

Title Permit

27,054 2,859

2,194 501

24,860 2,358

92% 82%

20:24 21:14

13:43 11:05

Handicap

1,901

381

1,520

80%

21:04

07:54

Title Duplicate

1,683

657

1,026

61%

23:53

06:58

Dealer (No Appointment)

1,470

157

1,313

89%

10:32

20:27

Question

1,357

353

1,004

74%

02:19

04:14

Dealer (Appointment)

760

718

94%

08:22

36:55

Manufactured Homes

204

166

81%

18:24

15:40

71%

16:55

29:46

33%

03:09

07:50

‐

100%

00:01

07:52

84,057

9,824

74,233

88.3%

23:04

Service

SMM Bonding / Tow Bills Title (Completed) Total

Source: Clerk and Recorder NemoQ data * Unattended customers refers to customers who pulled a ticket but were not served. They are assumed to mostly have left the office before being served.

As shown above, 9,824 customers who entered the Greeley office were not attended to after pulling a ticket to queue for service. This figure represents 11.7 percent of incoming customers during the seven month period. Although some of these tickets may have been created accidentally, a substantial portion is likely customers who left before being attended to because of wait times. Exhibit 2.6 below shows the wait times for the two most common transactions, title processing and registration renewals.

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Exhibit 2.6: In‐Person Wait Times for Greeley Motor Vehicle Title Work and Registration Renewals Sept. 2016 – April 2017 (minutes) Service Title Renewal

September 29:15 38:39

October 21:55 29:03

November December January February March April 16:24 15:56 15:10 17:23 26:05 26:29 23:42 22:19 20:42 24:12 27:21 28:24 Title and Renewal Average Wait time

Average 21:05 26:48 23:56

Source: Clerk and Recorder NemoQ data

According to NemoQ data, titling and registration renewals constituted approximately 88 percent of incoming Greeley Motor Vehicle customers. Thus, the typical Greeley Motor Vehicle customer waits approximately 24 minutes, on average, for service.

Processing Center Recommended by Information Technology Department has Not Been Fully Implemented In addition to in person and online transactions, the Motor Vehicle Department receives approximately 2,000 pieces of mail per month on average, or approximately 70 mailed‐in title processing tasks per Motor Vehicle staff assigned to process such work. According to transaction data provided by the Clerk and Recorder, it takes approximately 13.5 minutes to process a title, on average. Thus, the incoming mail represents approximately 2.8 FTEs of work each month.1 In addition to the title mail, the Clerk and Recorder’s Office receives approximately 5,668 calls per month, on average. According to interviews with Clerk and Recorder staff and management, title mail is consistently backlogged. During site visits, our staff observed several unsecured filing cabinets of title mail waiting to be processed by Motor Vehicle staff or waiting to be sent to the state Division of Motor Vehicles, all of which was kept in unsecured filing cabinets. This creates a risk for the County, because these are the only records of vehicle ownership before that information is entered in to the State’s vehicle database. In addition, title records contain sensitive financial and address information of the purchaser and owner of the vehicle. In February 2017, the Weld County Department of Information Technology provided a set of recommendations for improving service levels at the Motor Vehicle Department. The recommendations included setting up a dedicated “Processing Center” to consolidate responsibilities for processing

13.5 minutes (per title) times 2,000 mailed in titles equals 27,000 minutes or 450 hours per month. 450 hours per month/160 hours per FTE equals approximately 2.8 FTEs.

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incoming mail and phone calls and to assign those tasks to specific staff on an ongoing basis. According to the analysis, having a dedicated processing center had the potential to reduce wait times by relieving the work load of front line staff in all three offices. It would also enhance accountability for efficiently processing title mail, as that responsibility is currently dispersed among front line and non‐clerk staff, who frequently must work mandatory overtime to catch up on backlogged mail. Of the counties that responded to our benchmarking survey, Adams, El Paso, and Larimer Counties have a mail processing center or a division dedicated to mail and phones separate from the front line clerks. Jefferson County stated that they have requested a center from their Board of County Commissioners. In Mesa County, the mail is handled through the call center. Further, the Larimer County Clerk and Recorder wrote in her response that Larimer’s Processing Center “took paperwork backlog from a matter of weeks to a matter of days and enhanced customer experience when calling the office.” Management stated that the Clerk and Recorder’s Office has not fully implemented the Department of Information Technology’s recommendation because the Office does not currently have enough employees to staff the proposed Processing Center. Instead, clerks tend to incoming mail on an ad‐hoc basis. The Clerk and Recorder has a policy of processing title work within 60 days of purchase (after which temporary permits expire). According to interviews with Clerk and Recorder management and staff, processing the mail backlog to meet this deadline is one of the primary reasons for mandatory overtime. Recommendation 2.1: The Clerk and Recorder should use the additional three FTEs in Recommendation 1.5 to staff and fully implement the Processing Center recommended by the Department of Information Technology.

Customer Feedback Demonstrates a Desire to Reduce Wait Times Customer feedback may be transmitted to the Clerk and Recorder’s Office through online web mail, which is transmitted directly to the Clerk and Recorder, and through written comment cards available at each of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office locations. In our review of the feedback, we noted several themes of concern among customers, including:  Long wait times for in‐person transactions and phone calls;  Long transaction times;  Inattentive or rude staff;  Public information received via phone or online website being incorrect;  Public misunderstanding of procedures and/or requirements;  Understaffing of the offices;  More seating needed for waiting customers;

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 

Frustration that staff breaks and lunches appeared to not be backfilled; and, Desire for a dedicated registration renewal line.

We reviewed customer feedback from 2015 through March 2017. Although we requested customer feedback materials for 2014, the Clerk and Recorder stated that such materials, collected by the prior administration, were not available to her. We reviewed the Clerk and Recorder’s internal tracking of comment card ratings but could not tie the tallies back to the physical record that was available for review. The Clerk and Recorder stated that physical comment cards and tallies do not match because positive comment cards are distributed to clerks, as noted below.

The Current Practices of Incorporating Feedback from Customer Comments are Informal and Often Not Documented The Clerk and Recorder’s Office does not have written policies or procedures that describe how to process customer comments and how and whether to incorporate feedback into process improvements. However, management in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office stated in interviews that there is an informal policy of publicly sharing positive comment cards or webmail that mentions staff by name among employees. If feedback is negative and mentions a clerk by name, a supervisor or manager will follow up with that clerk individually. In addition, management stated that a Motor Vehicle staff meeting was convened to address the August 2016 letter from certain automobile dealers to the Weld County Council, which stated that Motor Vehicle employees were taking 90 to 120 days to process title work. Some Clerk and Recorder’s Office customers have also contacted members of the Board of County Commissioners regarding service issues. Although a substantial portion of the customer feedback did not include customer contact information, we noted few documented instances of follow ups to customers regarding their feedback.

The Clerk and Recorder has Made Certain Changes in Response to Customer Feedback As noted above, one theme of the customer feedback was to create a dedicated renewal line in order to process those transactions faster. As can be seen in Exhibit 2.6 above, renewals in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office have an average wait time of 26:06 minutes but a transaction time of 04:42 minutes, which is a shorter transaction time than most other services. According to the Clerk and Recorder, the Greeley Motor Vehicle office has had a dedicated renewal line for several years. In response to customer feedback, in the summer of 2015, the Clerk and Recorder reformatted the layout of the office so that additional clerks could serve the dedicated renewal line, while all other Motor Vehicle requests were attended to in a different area of the office. It is difficult to measure the impact of this work flow change, because NemoQ waiting time data is only available from after implementation of the dedicated renewal line.

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Recommendation 2.2: The Clerk and Recorder should develop and document policies and procedures to track and incorporate customer feedback and develop criteria and procedures of when to follow up with individual customers.

Recording Fees Stated in Telephone Recorded Messages are Incorrect; Online Fee Information Could be More Reliable, More Comprehensive, and Better Organized Recording fees The Clerk and Recorder’s Office has a phone message system and a website with information for the public, both of which list Recording fees; in the phone message system, the information is pre‐recorded. As of July 2017, the fees stated in the recorded telephone message are incorrect, as summarized in Exhibit 2.7 below.

Exhibit 2.7: Incorrect Recording Fees Listed in Telephone Recordings Document Type

Fee on Website

First page: $13.00 Addtl. page: $5.00 First page: $13.00 Docs. larger than 8½" x 14" / Plats / Surveys Addtl. page: $10.00 1‐2 pgs: $13.00 UCC financing statements 3+ pages: $18.00 Docs. smaller than 8½" x 14"

Fee in Telephone Recording First page: $11.00 Addtl. page: $5.00 First page: $11.00 Addtl. page: $10.00 1‐2 pgs: $11.00 3+ pages: $16.00

Actual Fee First page: $13.00 Addtl. page: $5.00 First page: $13.00 Addtl. page: $10.00 1‐2 pgs: $13.00 3+ pages: $18.00

Source: HMR review of website and phone message system as of July 24, 2017

Recording fees are also presented online, but they are not in table format and are spread out across separate webpages. In order to view the complete set of Recording fees, a visitor to the website must navigate to five different pages or sections on the Recording Department’s portion of the website: (1) “Record a Document” and then the “Fees” tab for recording and documentary fees; (2) “Marriage Licenses” for marriage license fees; (3) “Civil Unions” for civil union fees; (4) “Copies and Special Services” and then the “Copy Fees” tab for general copy fees; and (5) “Copies and Special Services” and then the “Special Services” tab for special service fees. These pages display fees in a combination of list and narrative form rather than in an organized table, which makes finding a specific fee more difficult.

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Our review of the websites for other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado found several examples of clear and accessible communication of Recording fees, including: 

Adams County has a link to a PDF that displays all Recording Services, Copy Services, and Marriage or Civil Union License Services in organized tables on one page. The PDF also notes accepted forms of payment and the date the information was last revised.



Boulder County has a “Document Fees & Requirements” webpage that summarizes all recording fees in one table. The page also provides links to a PDF that summarizes recording requirements, and a PDF of the State of Colorado’s list of County Clerk’s Fees.



Similarly, Arapahoe County has a fees webpage that summarizes all recording fees in organized tables. The webpage also notes accepted forms of payment.

These three counties’ schedules of fees are included for reference in Appendix D. Recommendation 2.3: The Clerk and Recorder should immediately update the recording fee information in the recorded phone message, and should review all recording fee information on the website for accuracy. Going forward, the Clerk and Recorder should explicitly delegate to a deputy or manager the responsibility of tracking changes in Colorado law and updating public‐facing information accordingly in order to ensure the accuracy of fees quoted online or on the telephone. Recommendation 2.4: The Clerk and Recorder should consolidate Recording fees and present them together in accessible, easy‐to‐use tables on one webpage. The webpage should note the date of last revision and accepted forms of payment, particularly when forms of payment differ by fee type (for example, marriage license fees are only accepted in cash).

New Motor Vehicle Employee Training is Not Adequately Evaluated According to the Clerk and Recorder, all new hires in Motor Vehicle, including employees who will later be assigned to the Del Camino or Fort Lupton offices, train for six weeks in Greeley before starting at their desks. Adjustments to the training schedule are made on a case‐by‐case basis to accommodate new hires who come to the office with existing experience from Motor Vehicle offices in other counties. The Motor Vehicle Department has a dedicated trainer.

Motor Vehicle Department Employees are More Dissatisfied than Satisfied with the Training for New Employees The survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees asked respondents to describe the training of recent hires, with recent hires answering for themselves and veterans answering for recent hires they have observed. Of respondents in the Motor Vehicle Department in Greeley and the branch offices, 43

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percent disagreed or strongly disagreed that recent hires have joined with adequate and accurate training to perform job duties. One‐third agreed or strongly agreed that recent hires have joined with adequate and accurate training to perform job duties.

Exhibit 2.8: Survey Results: Staff Perception of Training for New Hires in Motor Vehicle

Source: HMR staff survey; Elections and Recording responses filtered out (N = 21)

The audit team spoke with satisfied as well as dissatisfied employees in focus groups and one‐on‐one conversations. Some employees stated that they would have preferred more practical and hands‐on experience on a computer during their training and would have liked to spend less time reading through documents and procedures on paper. Employees also stated that it would be helpful to have more computer time to learn how to look up information on the electronic version of the manual rather than a hard copy, because the electronic version is what they will use on the front line when working with customers and it is updated regularly to reflect changes in State law. In general staff emphasized the importance and value of hands‐on computer training and being on the front line while shadowed by the trainer.

Surveying Recent Trainees would Provide Information on Areas for Improvement According to staff, the Clerk and Recorder’s Office does not solicit feedback from new employees who have recently completed training. A survey of recent hires several months after the completion of their training could reveal the effectiveness and value of the training and provide ideas for improvement. If

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implemented, the feedback and suggestions could benefit the trainer, improve the effectiveness of the training, and ultimately produce better‐trained employees. Recommendation 2.5: The Clerk and Recorder should work with the trainer to develop a survey or assessment instrument to solicit feedback from recent hires several months after the completion of their training. The Clerk and Recorder should review this feedback with the trainer and identify strengths of the training program and areas for improvement.

Conclusions The Motor Vehicle Department’s workload has increased over the past several years and is projected to continue to increase, given the County’s expected population growth of 62 percent between 2015 and 2030. Motor Vehicle transactions are increasing at a rate of approximately 25,000 per year, and wait times for the most common Motor Vehicle transactions are approximately 24 minutes in the Greeley office. An assessment by the Department of Information Technology recommended that the Clerk and Recorder establish a dedicated mail and call processing center in Greeley, similar to what exists in some other counties, but it has not been implemented due to the pressing need for front line staff. Customer feedback provided to the Clerk and Recorder consistently demonstrates a desire for short wait times and improved customer service in the Motor Vehicle Department. While the Clerk and Recorder has reasonable informal practices to incorporate both negative and positive customer feedback, which have included changes to operational processes, the process for incorporating feedback and responding to customers would be benefit from additional development and documentation. Further, automated communication with the public via the office’s telephonic information line and website could be expanded, better organized, and must be corrected so that fees are accurately communicated. Finally, the training of new Motor Vehicle employees could be made more effective by emphasizing practical on‐the‐job training, such as computer skills and shadowing current employees. Surveying recent graduates of the training program could help identify areas of improvement.

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Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 2.1.

Use the additional three FTEs recommended in Recommendation 1.5 to staff and fully implement the Processing Center recommended by the Department of Information Technology.

2.2.

Develop and document policies and procedures to track and incorporate customer feedback and develop criteria and procedures for when to follow up with individual customers.

2.3.

Immediately update the recording fee information in the recorded phone message, and should review all recording fee information on the website for accuracy. Going forward, the Clerk and Recorder should explicitly delegate to a deputy or manager the responsibility of tracking changes in Colorado law and updating public‐facing information accordingly in order to ensure the accuracy of fees quoted online or on the telephone.

2.4.

Consolidate Recording fees and present them together in accessible, easy‐to‐use tables on one webpage. The webpage should note the date of last revision and accepted forms of payment, particularly when forms of payment differ by fee type (for example, marriage license fees are only accepted in cash).

2.5.

Costs and Benefits The fiscal impact of Recommendation 2.1 is discussed in Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels. The remaining recommendations will require staff time, but are short‐term projects that may be accomplished by executive management with minimal ongoing efforts. Implementing the processing center, correcting confusing publicly available fee information, and improving new hire training will make the customer‐facing functions of the Clerk and Recorder’s Motor Vehicle and Recording Departments more effective by reducing in‐person wait and transaction times. This should reduce the amount of customer complaints, allowing the Clerk and Recorder to follow up with dissatisfied customers, when appropriate.

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Administrative and Executive Decision Making The Clerk and Recorder has made several personnel policy changes since 2015. These include aligning the Office’s vacation use policy with that of the rest of the County and implementing productivity standards for the Recording Department. Although the merits of these policy changes may appear reasonable, staff would benefit from improved communications about such changes, particularly the reasons motivating the change in policy. Our review also identified several issues in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office facility. There was a WiFi network that the waiting public wished to use (based on number of customer requests for login credentials), however the Clerk and Recorder decided to shut it down rather than request to expand it. Two staff members cannot discreetly access their silent alarm triggers, leaving them vulnerable to threatening customers. In addition, the book keeping area could be better secured against intrusion. Finally, our review found that the recruitment processes for all eleven new hires in 2016 were not conducted in compliance with the Clerk and Recorder’s internal recruitment procedures and one contract was signed without approval from the Board of County Commissioners, a violation of the Weld County Charter.

Management Could Improve Communications of Personnel Policies In our survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office staff, only 21 percent of respondents indicated that personnel policies were always or usually communicated clearly and universally, as shown in Exhibit 3.1 below.

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Exhibit 3.1: Survey Results: Communication of Personnel Policies

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

We discussed communication of personnel policies with employees in interviews and focus groups and reviewed documentation of communication of personnel policies. Based on these discussions, we identified the transition to the Clerk and Recorder’s new vacation policy and the Recording Department’s productivity standards as particularly of concern to employees.

Communication Regarding Vacation Time Policies Could be Improved After the change in administration in 2015, the current Clerk and Recorder sought to align the Department’s use of vacation time with the rest of the County. Under the prior administration, Clerk and Recorder employees were able to take their vacation time at any point during the year so long as the total amount of vacation time taken did not exceed what they would accrue during the year, even if they had not yet accrued the time off by the date of vacation. According to the Controller, current practice in other County departments is to have employees take time off only after they have accrued it. However, an immediate policy shift in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office would have created an undesirable situation wherein no employee could take time off at the beginning of the year and would have concentrated requests to use accrued vacation time at the end of the year. Therefore, a partial transition in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office began in 2015 and is ongoing. In 2016, veteran employees

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were only allowed to take 40 hours negative (that is, take vacation without first accruing it). In 2017, negative accruals were not allowed. According to the County’s Human Resources and Finance staff, this transition has been carried out consistent with County policies. However, it has nevertheless been a source of frustration and confusion for Clerk and Recorder staff, many of whom reported that they do not understand what is motivating the change in vacation policy or why they cannot use previously accrued vacation hours. The only written documentation of the vacation policy transition is an all‐office email from November 2015 that states: Please remember in 2016 you will only be allowed to go up to 40 hours negative. Starting in 2017, you will not be allowed to use vacation before it is earned. With your departments policy being updated, you may want to start planning so that in January, 2017 you have time being carried over into the year, or you will not be able to take any vacation time until it has been earned, and then all time will be based on your accrual as to how many hours you will have available to use. If you were hired in 2015 you may only take vacation hours that have been earned and are not allowed to go negative. If you have questions please see Rudy or myself. In March 2017, the Clerk and Recorder sent another all‐office email stating that employees may not take more vacation time than they would accrue in the year, even if employees had accrued vacation time from prior years. Although the terms of the vacation policy transition have been communicated to employees, the reasons behind it have not been made clear. No other documentation of the vacation leave policy, beyond the County Code, is available for employees to better understand the transition to the new vacation policy. This lack of documentation for changes to personnel policies is consistent with the findings of our staff survey. As shown below in Exhibit 3.2, 45 percent of respondents reported that they learn about changes to personnel policy during staff meetings. By contrast, 10 percent typically learn of such changes through formal written notification.

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Exhibit 3.2: Survey Results: How Staff Learn About Policy Changes Answer choice During staff meetings Informally or through the grapevine Other Through formal written notification Directly from my manager

45% 24% 17% 10% 3%

Source: HMR survey of Clerk and Recorder staff (N = 29 respondents)

The Clerk and Recorder currently maintains documentation of personnel policies that is reviewed with new hires and available to employees afterwards as part of their welcome packet that includes other human resource information. On vacation, it currently states: “Vacation – Refer to the handout provided by Human Resources. Seniority will only come into play if multiple people at the same time request time off; otherwise it will be first come first serve.” It does not contain any information regarding the transition to the new current vacation policy that has been underway since 2015. The lack of written communication regarding the vacation policy transition has left staff without a resource to refer back to when they have questions about the vacation policy, why it is occurring, and whether they can use previously accrued vacation time. While verbal communications regarding the transition may have occurred in staff meetings, the ongoing confusion demonstrates it was insufficient. In reviewing this draft report, the Clerk and Recorder stated that she is currently developing a new vacation policy and associated documentation with an expected rollout in 2018.

The Recording Department’s Productivity Standards May Not be Reasonable and Are Not Measured Effectively The Recording Department is responsible for processing and preserving recorded public documents, such as marriage licenses, real estate deeds and leases, military discharges, and property subdivision maps. Most documents are made available to the public in a searchable electronic database. This database requires documents to be scanned and indexed by staff to code key attributes of recorded documents, such as the pertinent names and dates on each document. State law requires that recorded documents be made available to the public within five business days. According to the Clerk and Recorder, in order to make sure that deadline was met, in 2015 she implemented productivity standards for Recording employees of indexing 150 documents per day with a maximum of 2 errors per day. Initially, each employee’s productivity and errors were posted publicly, which made some employees uncomfortable, but that is no longer the practice. Productivity and errors

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Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

in indexing are measured by the Recording database software, Eagle. However, some Recording employees report that they did not understand how the Eagle error report was generated or whether it was a reliable indicator of the errors in their indexing. We reviewed a sample error report during our site visit and noted that no Recording employees were meeting the productivity standards, which suggests that the standards are unreasonable, not being enforced, the Recoding department has inefficient process, or all of these factors. Clerk and Recorder employees stated in interviews and focus groups that they did not understand the reason for the new productivity standards or the analytical basis for the productivity and error rate expectations. Several felt that the standards were unreasonable rather than a source of motivation. Recommendation 3.1: The Clerk and Recorder should update the Department’s office policies to include information on the motivation and the terms of any new policy and how employees will be held accountable for meeting policy goals. The policy document should be updated as policies change and new versions should immediately be distributed to staff.

Despite Long Waits, there is No Public WiFi at Motor Vehicle Offices There are WiFi networks in the Greeley Motor Vehicle Office and at the satellite offices, but these are only for County staff and require staff login credentials. According to the Department of Information Technology, there has never been any public WiFi (that is, access without login credentials) at any of the Clerk and Recorder offices. However, the Information Technology Department did provide WiFi for County staff in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office that required login credentials starting in approximately January 2016. However, the Clerk and Recorder requested the discontinuation of the WiFi in Greeley in January 2017. The Clerk and Recorder stated in an interview that members of the public were asking for login and credentials from Motor Vehicle staff and did not want clerks to be burdened with the additional task of providing the public with login credentials in the midst of their vehicle transactions. According to the Clerk and Recorder, the discontinuation of the guest WiFi was only communicated to staff who inquired about its status; there was no office‐wide announcement. We believe that the public desire for WiFi is demonstrated by the requests for login credentials. Access to WiFi may mitigate some of the unpleasantness of the long wait times in the Motor Vehicle Department, which was typically 24 minutes in the main office in Greeley for most transactions recorded by NemoQ between September 2016 and April 2017. Weld County currently has public WiFi for other public‐facing government functions. There is public WiFi in the County’s Administrative Building, which is used for the Board of County Commissioner’s hearings

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Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

and work sessions. In addition, the Health Department has WiFi that it uses to help patients with registration and check in for services. Recommendation 3.2: The Clerk and Recorder should request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, that the Department of Information Services install and operate open public WiFi that does not require login credentials at all three Motor Vehicle offices.

Security Concerns at the Main Office in Greeley Not All Employees have Access to a Silent Alarm that Can be Accessed Undetectably During site visits the project team asked employees to show us a “silent alarm” button, which is a small button usually placed on the underside of a desk that an employee can press to silently notify the Sheriff’s Department in the case of a threatening or violent customer. Office managers reported that the alarms are tested periodically and are the responsibility of the Department of Buildings and Grounds. In most cases these alarms are located underneath an employee’s desk for easy and subtle use, allowing an employee to call for help without a dangerous customer noticing. However, the project team observed two silent alarm buttons in the Recording section of the main office in Greeley that were not placed underneath but rather above the desks, which would require an employee to lean over and press the button in full view of a customer. Employees would not be able to press the alarm without a customer noticing due to the location of their placement. Access to one alarm button was further obstructed by a small desk printer, which would require the employee not only to reach over across a desk to push the alarm, but move a printer in order to access it. After inquiring about the fiscal impact of adjusting these alarms, the Director of Buildings and Grounds initiated a work order to move them. In addition, the Clerk and Recorder stated in an interview that she presided over the installation of installation of additional panic buttons in 2015. Recommendation 3.3: The Clerk and Recorder should request the Director of Buildings and Grounds to adjust the placement of these two alarm buttons in Recording so that employees can safely and undetectably access them in the case of a violent or threatening customer.

The Bookkeeping Area of the Motor Vehicle Department Could be More Secure and Removed from the Waiting Public The audit team observed during site visits that the waiting area of the Greeley Motor Vehicle Department is typically full of customers waiting to be served. The back of the Motor Vehicle office

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

space, including non‐front line staff, is visible to the waiting public and can be accessed from the waiting room through a small gate approximately three feet tall. The bookkeeping section of the office, which houses a cash counting machine and financial information, is located near the gate. The project team observed that it would be relatively easy for a waiting customer to track the flow of cash in the office or hear the cash counting machine, which presents a security risk for the office. Recommendation 3.4: The Clerk and Recorder should provide more privacy and security for the bookkeeping operations in Greeley, either by locating bookkeeping employees and equipment near the back of the office away from a public‐facing point of entry or by limiting the public’s view of the bookkeeping operations.

The Clerk and Recorder Did Not Follow Charter Requirements for One Contract According to Section 3‐8‐4(m) of the Weld County Charter, the Board of County Commissioners must approve any and all contracts on behalf of the County. This includes contracts for County departments headed by elected officials. However, in August 2015, the Clerk and Recorder exceeded her powers and signed a professional services contract without Board approval, a violation of the charter requirement. The Clerk and Recorder was reminded of the requirement to seek Board approval for all contracts and has not unilaterally signed a contract without Board approval since. Recommendation 3.5: The Clerk and Recorder should continue to seek approval from the Board of County Commissioners for all contracts.

The Clerk and Recorder Did Not Follow the Office’s Recruitment Procedures in 2016 According to the Clerk and Recorder’s internal hiring procedures dated January 1, 2015 (and which supplement the requirements in Weld County Code Section 3‐2‐50), the Clerk and Recorder, Chief Deputy, Department Manager, and a Human Resource Representative are each required to interview all candidates that Human Resources certifies as having met the minimum qualification for a vacant position. In addition, all final candidates’ computer skills are supposed to be tested to assess proficiency in data entry, typing, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft Excel. To test compliance with these procedures, we requested documentation of hiring processes that occurred from 2014 through 2016 from the Clerk and Recorder. The Clerk and Recorder did not have

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Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

access to files from the prior administration and therefore did not provide any documentation for new hires in 2014. The Clerk and Recorder further stated that that the Human Resources Department has a policy of only keeping recruitment records for one year. Nevertheless, the Clerk and Recorder was able to provide documentation of interviews and job offer letters for recruitments that occurred in 2015 and 2016. We focused on 2016 recruitments due to the one‐year record retention policy As summarized in Exhibit 3.3 below, documentation of the recruitment process in 2016 suggests that internal recruitment procedures were not followed.

Exhibit 3.3: Summary of Recruitment Documentation for 11 Clerk and Recorder New Hires in 2016 Year Total New Hires Number of recruitments with documentation of required steps: Clerk and Recorder interview Department Manager interview HR rep. interview Computer skill testing

2016 11

10/11 4/11 7/11 10/11

Source: Weld County Clerk and Recorder and Human Resources Department

As shown above in Exhibit 3.3, seven out of eleven new hires included Human Resources representative in 2016. In addition, only four out of eleven recruitments had documentation of the Department manager interview. One new hire had no documentation whatsoever, including for computer skill testing. According to the Clerk and Recorder, that individual was only interviewed by the Clerk and Recorder herself, and no documentation of the recruitment is available. The Clerk and Recorder further stated that these procedures are not always followed if candidates are clearly qualified or required members of the interview panel are not available. Recommendation 3.6: For 2018 and beyond, the Director of Human Resources should ensure that all hires in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office follow the Office’s recruitment procedures for interviews and testing. The Clerk and Recorder and Human Resources should document and report the results to the Board of County Commissioners in the first quarter of each year.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

Conclusions The Clerk and Recorder should improve the communication of personnel policy changes to staff. Clerk and Recorder employees identified the office‐wide transition to a new vacation policy and the Recording productivity policy as areas of particular concern. Though the merits of these policy changes appear reasonable, staff would benefit from more improved communications, particularly the reasons motivating the change in policy. In addition, staff would benefit from having access to an updated office policy manual that they can refer to when they have questions or concerns about certain personnel policies. Our review also identified several issues in the Greeley Motor Vehicle office facility. There was a WiFI network that the waiting public wished to use, however the Clerk and Recorder decided to shut it down rather than request to expand it. At least two staff members cannot discreetly access their silent alarm triggers, leaving them vulnerable to threatening customers. Finally, the book keeping area could be better secured against intrusion. In addition, our review found that one new hire in the Clerk and Recorder’s office in 2016 did not have any underlying documentation confirming the recruitment process was consistent with that office’s recruitment procedures. The remaining ten hires in 2016 had documentation of their recruitment, but only four followed the Clerk and Recorder interview panel composition requirement.

Recommendations The Clerk and Recorder should: 3.1.

3.2.

Request, and the Board of County Commissioners should approve, that the Department of Information Technology install and operate open public WiFi that does not require login credentials at all three Motor Vehicle offices.

3.3.

Request the Director of Buildings and Grounds to adjust the placement of these two alarm buttons in Recording so that employees can safely and undetectably access them in the case of a violent or threatening customer.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Section 3: Administrative and Executive Decision Making

3.4.

3.5.

Continue to seek approval from the Board of County Commissioners for all contracts.

The Director of Human Resources should: 3.6.

Costs and Benefits With the exception of recommendations 3.2 and 3.3, we do not expect our recommendations to have a fiscal impact. According to the Department of Information Technology, installation of additional wireless access points for the three Motor Vehicle offices would have a one‐time cost of approximately $10,500. Total annual ongoing costs for internet access are estimated to be $3,000 ‐ $5,000. According to the Director of the Department of Buildings and Groups, relocating alarms may be accomplished with existing staff and will have no fiscal impact. However, implementing these recommendations will alleviate frustration among staff and the public, ensure the Clerk and Recorder has taken sufficient steps to secure incoming cash, and guarantee that new hires are vetted consistent with the recruitment procedures already in place at the Clerk and Recorder’s Office.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC

Appendix A: Survey of Clerk and Recorder’s Office Employees The project team conducted an online survey of employees in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office between May 5 and May 21, 2017. Survey invitations were sent to all full‐time and part‐time employees in the Greeley, Del Camino, and Fort Lupton offices except the Clerk and Recorder and the Chief Deputy. Prior to sending the survey invitations, employees were given the opportunity to opt to have the survey invitation sent to a personal email address rather than their Weld County email address, which was used by default. Employees were also provided with instructions on how to access their Weld County email addresses remotely, allowing them to take the survey from home. Participation in the survey was restricted only to employees with the invitation email, and respondents could only submit one response. Of the 56 total invitations sent, 30 employees submitted completed responses for a 53.6 percent response rate. (One blank response was also submitted but excluded from our analysis of results.) Participation in the survey was optional and employees self‐selected in to the group of respondents. The group of respondents is not a representative sample because it was not drawn randomly from the group of all Clerk and Recorder’s Office employees. Survey results should be interpreted only as a representation of the opinions of approximately half of the employees in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office. The percentages presented not necessarily representative of the group of all employees. The following pages include the results of the employee survey as generated by SurveyMonkey, unmodified by the project team.

Harvey M. Rose Associate, LLC A‐1

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q1 The purpose of this survey is to understand your experience working at the Clerk and Recorderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Office. Harvey M. Rose Associates is administering this survey as part of our performance review of the Department. The survey is managed through a secure external site, SurveyMonkey. Harvey M. Rose Associates will report results of the survey in aggregate and will not include any personally identifiable information. This survey should take approximately 20 minutes to complete. All questions are optional, so if you do not wish to answer a question or do not feel you can accurately answer it, you are free to skip it.In order to maintain the integrity and confidentiality of the survey administration process, please do not discuss either the questions or your answers with anyone, including other employees or supervisors in the Department. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey.To begin the survey, check "I agree" below and click Next. Answered: 31

Skipped: 0

I agree

10%

20%

30%

40%

Answer Choices

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

100.00%

I agree

TOTAL

31 31

A-2

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q2 Overall, I have been ____ with my job in the past year. Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Very satisfied

Satisfied

Neither satisfied no...

Dissatisfied

Very dissatisfied 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Answer Choices

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very satisfied

10.00%

Satisfied

33.33%

Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied

23.33%

Dissatisfied

30.00%

Very dissatisfied

3.33%

TOTAL

A-3

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q3 Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement: I feel that my division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording) runs efficiently and effectively. Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Answer Choices

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

6.67%

Agree

46.67%

Neither agree nor disagree

16.67%

Disagree

23.33%

Strongly disagree

6.67%

TOTAL

A-4

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q4 How long do you want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

For 5+ years

For the next 1-5 years

I want to leave within...

10%

20%

30%

40%

Answer Choices

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

For 5+ years

46.67%

For the next 1-5 years

20.00%

I want to leave within the year

33.33%

TOTAL

A-5

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q5 If you want to continue working at the Clerk and Recorder’s office, please select the reasons(s) (check all that apply): Answered: 20

Skipped: 11

The work I do is fulfilling I have opportunitie... I like the office culture I feel supported by... I have a good work/life... I don’t want to apply for... I can’t find a better...

Other: Other (please specify) 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Answer Choices

Responses

The work I do is fulfilling

50.00%

I have opportunities to grow in my role

20.00%

I like the office culture

25.00%

I feel supported by management

30.00%

I have a good work/life balance

45.00%

I don’t want to apply for other jobs

10.00%

I can’t find a better compensation package elsewhere (including salary, health insurance, retirement)

45.00%

Other:

0.00%

Other (please specify)

15.00%

Total Respondents: 20

A-6

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q6 If you want to leave within a year, please select the reason(s) (check all that apply): Answered: 10

Skipped: 21

There is little or no... The job takes away too muc... Office politics are... I can find a better... Other (please specify) The workload is too much ... I no longer care for thi... I am planning to retire Customer interactions... My commitments outside the... 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Answer Choices

90% 100%

Responses

There is little or no opportunity for advancement

70.00%

The job takes away too much of my personal or family time

50.00%

Office politics are uncomfortable

40.00%

I can find a better compensation package elsewhere (including salary, health insurance, retirement)

40.00%

Other (please specify)

30.00%

The workload is too much for me

20.00%

I no longer care for this type of work

20.00%

I am planning to retire

20.00%

Customer interactions are too demanding

10.00%

My commitments outside the office have changed

0.00%

Total Respondents: 10

A-7

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q7 How would you describe the current staffing in your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording)? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Significantly understaffed

Slightly understaffed

Adequately staffed

Slightly overstaffed

Significantly overstaffed 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

Answer Choices

50%

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Significantly understaffed

33.33%

Slightly understaffed

36.67%

Adequately staffed

20.00%

Slightly overstaffed

6.67%

Significantly overstaffed

3.33%

TOTAL

A-8

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q8 How would you describe the workload in your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording)? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Very heavy – so heavy we ...

Heavy – we are keeping up, ...

Moderate – we are busy, bu...

Light – we often have v...

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Answer Choices

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very heavy – so heavy we are often falling behind

50.00%

Heavy – we are keeping up, but it would be nice to get a break from time to time

36.67%

Moderate – we are busy, but there are times when we look for other things to do

13.33%

Light – we often have very little to do

0.00%

TOTAL

A-9

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q9 How would you describe the workflow efficiency (how a task passes through administrative steps and processes from beginning to end) of your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording)? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Excellent

Good

Fair

Poor

Unsatisfactory

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Excellent

10.00%

Good

40.00%

Fair

23.33%

Poor

26.67%

Unsatisfactory

0.00%

TOTAL

A-10

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q10 How would you describe the division of labor (distribution of tasks among staff) of your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording)? Answered: 28

Skipped: 3

Excellent

Good

Fair

Poor

Unsatisfactory

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Excellent

3.57%

Good

42.86%

Fair

21.43%

Poor

25.00%

Unsatisfactory

7.14%

TOTAL

A-11

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q11 How would you describe the organizational structure (hierarchy/seniority, how roles and responsibilities are delegated) of your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording)? Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Excellent

Good

Fair

Poor

Unsatisfactory

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Excellent

3.45%

Good

34.48%

Fair

24.14%

Poor

24.14%

Unsatisfactory

13.79%

TOTAL

A-12

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q12 If you are not an Office Manager, describe the capacity of your Office Manager to provide leadership for your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording). If you are an Office Manager, describe your capacity to provide leadership for your division. Answered: 28

Skipped: 3

Very little capacity –...

Little capacity –...

Satisfactory capacity –...

Good capacity – always...

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very little capacity – always spread too thin

21.43%

Little capacity – usually spread too thin

17.86%

Satisfactory capacity – usually available but occasionally too busy

32.14%

Good capacity – always available

28.57%

TOTAL

A-13

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q13 If you are not a Tech IV/Team Lead, describe the capacity of your Tech IV/Team Lead to provide support to Tech IIs and IIIs in your division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording). If you are a Tech IV/Team Lead, describe your capacity to provide leadership to Tech IIs and IIIs in your division. Answered: 23

Skipped: 8

Very little capacity –...

Little capacity –...

Satisfactory capacity –...

Good capacity – always...

N/A – the office manag... 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very little capacity – always spread too thin

4.35%

Little capacity – usually spread too thin

30.43%

Satisfactory capacity – usually available but occasionally too busy

30.43%

Good capacity – always available

30.43%

N/A – the office manager in my division is a Tech IV.

4.35%

TOTAL

A-14

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q14 Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement:Recent hires have joined my division (Del Camino office, Fort Lupton office, Greeley MV, Greeley Elections, or Greeley Recording) with adequate and accurate training to perform their job duties. (If you are a recent hire, answer for yourself. If you are not a recent hire, answer based on your observations of recent hires.) Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree

N/A â&#x20AC;&#x201C; no experience w... 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

10.34%

Agree

34.48%

Neither agree nor disagree

20.69%

Disagree

17.24%

Strongly disagree

13.79%

N/A â&#x20AC;&#x201C; no experience with recent hires

3.45%

TOTAL

A-15

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q15 Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement:Personnel policies and procedures (for example, vacation time policy or promotion procedures) are consistently applied. Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

6.67%

Agree

10.00%

Neither agree nor disagree

26.67%

Disagree

16.67%

Strongly disagree

40.00%

TOTAL

A-16

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q16 Please rate your level of agreement with the following statement:Policies and procedures related to the execution of job duties (for example, how to prioritize in-person customers vs. phone customers, or how to ensure compliance with state regulations) are consistently implemented. Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

16.67%

Agree

23.33%

Neither agree nor disagree

33.33%

Disagree

13.33%

Strongly disagree

13.33%

TOTAL

A-17

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q17 Please fill in the blank with the descriptor you believe to be most accurate. Personnel policies are ______ communicated clearly and universally to staff. Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Rarely

Never

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Always

6.90%

Usually

13.79%

Sometimes

34.48%

Rarely

37.93%

Never

6.90%

TOTAL

A-18

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q18 Please fill in the blank with the descriptor you believe to be most accurate. Policies related to the execution of job duties tasks are _____ communicated clearly and universally to staff. Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Always

Usually

Sometimes

Rarely

Never

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Always

13.79%

Usually

34.48%

Sometimes

31.03%

Rarely

20.69%

Never

0.00%

TOTAL

A-19

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q19 Usually I learn about changes in policy or procedure for the first time: Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Through formal written...

During staff meetings

Directly from my manager

Informally or through the...

Other (please specify) 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Through formal written notification

10.34%

During staff meetings

44.83%

Directly from my manager

3.45%

Informally or through the grapevine

24.14%

Other (please specify)

17.24%

TOTAL

A-20

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q20 How do you feel about the monthly staff meetings? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Always valuable

Usually valuable

Sometimes valuable

Rarely valuable

Never valuable

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Always valuable

10.00%

Usually valuable

26.67%

Sometimes valuable

46.67%

Rarely valuable

16.67%

Never valuable

0.00%

TOTAL

A-21

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q21 I feel comfortable providing input or feedback to management and am confident that it will be given fair consideration. Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

13.33%

Agree

20.00%

Neither agree nor disagree

16.67%

Disagree

16.67%

Strongly disagree

33.33%

TOTAL

A-22

Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q22 How satisfied are you with your current work/life balance? Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Very satisfied

Slightly satisfied

Neutral

Slightly dissatisfied

Very dissatisfied 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very satisfied

20.69%

Slightly satisfied

6.90%

Neutral

34.48%

Slightly dissatisfied

20.69%

Very dissatisfied

17.24%

TOTAL

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Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q23 How satisfied are you with your physical workspace? Answered: 30

Skipped: 1

Very satisfied

Slightly satisfied

Neutral

Slightly dissatisfied

Very dissatisfied 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Very satisfied

23.33%

Slightly satisfied

13.33%

Neutral

26.67%

Slightly dissatisfied

20.00%

Very dissatisfied

16.67%

TOTAL

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Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q24 At work, I have personally been negatively affected by favoritism or have witnessed instances of favoritism or preferential treatment for others. Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Regularly

Several times

Once or twice

Never

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Regularly

51.72%

Several times

10.34%

Once or twice

13.79%

Never

24.14%

TOTAL

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Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q25 At work, I have personally experienced vindictive/retaliatory actions or have witnessed vindictive/retaliatory actions against others. Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Regularly

Several times

Once or twice

Never

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Regularly

10.34%

Several times

48.28%

Once or twice

10.34%

Never

31.03%

TOTAL

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Weld County Clerk and Recorder Staff Survey

Q26 I am afraid of vindictive or retaliatory actions at work. Answered: 29

Skipped: 2

Strongly agree

Agree

Neither agree nor disagree

Disagree

Strongly disagree 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Answer Choices

60%

70%

80%

90% 100%

Responses

Strongly agree

34.48%

Agree

24.14%

Neither agree nor disagree

20.69%

Disagree

10.34%

Strongly disagree

10.34%

TOTAL

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey Based on information collected during the initial phase of the project, the project team devised a set of survey questions to request additional information from Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in other counties in Colorado. Information requested included organization and office structure, hiring and turnover, and policies and procedures. The project team contacted the same counties that were included in the Big 10 Counties survey: Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Mesa, and Pueblo. Of these nine, we received responses from Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in six counties: Adams, Boulder, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Mesa Counties. The full results of the benchmarking survey (excluding significantly large attachments like cash handling manuals) are presented on the following pages.

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

1. Please provide an organization chart of the Clerk and Recorder’s Office, including leadership/management staff, team leaders, division managers, etc. Adams County See attached.

Boulder County [Attached]

El Paso County Attached.

Jefferson County Attached Administration – consists of the Elected Clerk and Recorder, Director of Technical Administration and a Budget Analyst. Under Technical Administration is one IT staff (one additional currently being hired) and the Public Information Coordinator. Recording – consists of a Director, a Supervisor, 3 leads and 10 staff CTB – consist of the Clerk to the Board and 2 staff Motor Vehicle – attached – in addition Evergreen has one Lead/Level 3 clerk with each of the other four locations having 3 Lead/Level 3 clerks.

Larimer County Note: All answers specifically relate to the realities since Angela Myers became the Larimer County Clerk in May 2013. Response prepared July 13, 2017. See attached.

Mesa County See Attached.

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Adams County

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Adams County

Manger Supervisor Recording Tech II

Recording Tech II

Recording Tech I

Recording /Passport Tech I

( 2018 Budget Request)

(2018 Budget Request)

Project Designated FTE

RP2

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Adams County

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Adams County

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Boulder County

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El Paso County

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Larimer County

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Larimer County

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Larimer County

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2. How many FTEs are currently employed in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office? Adams County 97.5

Boulder County 75 FTEs

El Paso County Jefferson County 130 FTE (as of July 5, 112.5 2017)

Larimer County We have 84 FTE positions.

Mesa County 29 FTEs

3. How many offices does your jurisdiction’s Clerk and Recorder’s Office have and how are they staffed (e.g. how many FTEs in each office)? Adams County 6‐ See Org Chart

Boulder County 3 Branches Boulder: 59 FTE Longmont: 10 FTE Lafayette: 6 FTE

El Paso County Broken down by function: Driver’s License – 8 Elections – 9 Motor Vehicle – 82 Operations – 31 We have five motor vehicle offices throughout the county, and staff from each major function are dispersed throughout as needs arise.

Jefferson County 6 locations 1. Jeffco Courts & Admin Bldg. a. Administration 3 b. Clerk to Board 3 c. Recording 15 d. Motor Vehicle 24.5 (5 are Admin & Bookkeeping) 2. Motor Vehicle Arvada 17 3. Motor Vehicle Evergreen 5 4. Motor Vehicle Lakewood 16 5. Motor Vehicle S.Jeffco 14 6. Laramie Bldg. a. Administration 3 b. Elections 12

Larimer County Three Offices – FTEs allocated to each: Fort Collins (including Administration/Support Staff, Elections, Recording, and Vehicle Licensing) = 68; Loveland (VL only) = 14; Estes Park (VL only) = 2.

Mesa County Clerk to the Board ‐ 1.5 employees Elections ‐ 4 Employees Recording ‐ 4 Employees Motor Vehicle ‐ 19.5 Employees

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4. Please provide the following turnover data for the past three years: a. Total number of FTEs in the Clerk and Recorder’s Office per year Adams County Boulder County 97.5 2017 = 75 2016 = 74 2015 = 73 2014 = 72.5

El Paso County No response.

Jefferson County Larimer County 112.5 each year Significant research would be required to provide details, so I will respond in general terms. I became C&R in May of 2013. Currently, approximately 40% of the current staff was here when I took office. During this period of time, turnover has most dramatically been due to retirements (baby boomers coming of age), terminations and resignations to go elsewhere have been generally in equal number (approximately 5‐6 each).

Mesa County 2015 33‐34 2016 29‐33 (laid 4 positions off) 2017 29‐30

b. Number of separations due to retirement per year Adams County 4

Boulder County 2016 = 3 2015 = 2 2014 = 0

El Paso County No response.

Jefferson County 2015 2 2016 4 2017 4

Larimer County [no response]

Mesa County [no response]

Jefferson County

Larimer County [no response]

Mesa County [no response]

c. Number of separations due to quitting per year Adams County 18

Boulder County 2016 = 15 2015 = 5 2014 = 13

El Paso County No response.

2015 7 2016 8 2017 11

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b. Number of separations due to termination (i.e. firing or layoffs) per year Adams County 21

Boulder County 2016 = 1 2015 = 0 2014 = 2

El Paso County No response.

Jefferson County

2015 3 2016 3 2017 6

Larimer County [no response]

Mesa County [no response]

Larimer County [no response]

Mesa County **We do not have access to the specific breakdown shown above. The data we do have shows the following separations per year: 2015 3 2016 6 (big layoff at end of year) 2017 5

e) Number of separations for other reasons per year Adams County Temporary – 33 Election Judges – 228 Other ‐ 31

Boulder County 2016 = 1 2015 = 2 2014 = 1

El Paso County No response.

Jefferson County [No response]

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5. Does staff at Clerk and Recorder’s Office work staggered shifts (e.g. early shifts and late shifts)? Adams County Yes, in Motor Vehicle. Early shift 6:50am‐ 3:50pm. Late shift 8:40am‐5:40pm.

Boulder County As a general practice No we do not have staggered shifts. There may be a few (unofficial) during peak election season and there are for temp workers

El Paso County Our Information Systems (IS) department staggers shifts when necessary.

Jefferson County Yes, the hours for all C&R offices are 7:30am – 4:30pm. We also offer staff options for 4 tens but those are limited each weekday to assure complete coverage at all time.

Larimer County To a small degree, yes – within an hour beginning/end of day

Mesa County We recently changed our MV from stagger to regular shifts. All other offices work regular shifts, as well

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6. Please describe the organization of processing in‐person motor vehicle customers (e.g., is there a separate line for renewals; are a dedicated set of employees tasked with answering phones only; etc.). Adams County There is a Service Center that answers phone calls. Front line staff takes customers.

Boulder County a. Our staff are trained in all aspects of MV transactions b. Phone calls are routed to the Boulder branch and all staff are trained and take turns on the phones c. We have renewal lines with new staff that are not yet fully trained d. When all staff are trained we will choose depending on volume of the public and needs if we should open a renewal line e. All staff share in completing/working up mortgages f. Some staff have additional duties that not everyone is trained in: Disability placards, Fleets, SMM

El Paso County El Paso County utilizes the Q‐ Flow queuing system. It’s number system based on first come first service. However, we leverage five queues amongst of office staff. The queues are broken down by transaction type. Express – Renewals, plate replacements, address changes, tab replacements, and persons with disability placards. Drivers License – MVR’s, renewals, transfers, motorcycle endorsements, and replacements. Main – Title transactions and first time registrations. Military – Expedited service for active duty military service members. Process all transaction types. Dealers – Dealer service desks to process five transactions per dealer per day We have 5 phone technicians. Who answer questions and process registration renewals and address changes by phone

Jefferson County ‐‐ Our Golden office is the only office set up to answer public phone calls, there are 2 stations with a third necessary. All employees rotate through phone duty for 2 weeks, maybe 2‐3 times a year. While manning the phones, they also do additional duties – i.e. chattel stickering, persons with disabilities placards, emission extensions, etc. ‐‐ We have NEMO‐Q lobby management system in our 4 busiest offices – Evergreen is excluded. When the wait times increase, the manager can designate certain stations to call renewal numbers only. Most offices have a specific desk for dealers with employees rotating through this duty.

Larimer County All staff on the front line assist all types of customers – no separate lines – all are expected to be capable of performing all transaction types. We have a Processing Center where phones and back‐office paperwork are processed. All staff rotate between this area and the front line.

Mesa County We have a number of options available. The new kiosk is in the lobby to process simple renewals. We also have drop boxes for customers who do not want to wait. We are beginning to implement appointments for dealers. We have a call center to process voters by phone. The line for in‐person service is not separated other than renewals we can direct to the new kiosk. We have two dedicated phone employees who provide phone support to the public, answer a centralized e‐mail ‘plates@mesacounty.us ’ work mail and other back office processes.

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7. Do you require mandatory overtime for Clerk and Recorder employees in your jurisdiction? If yes, how many hours per month are required and which divisions require overtime? Adams County Overtime is only during the election season. MV is “if needed”

Boulder County Mandatory OT happens as needed and we will start asking for volunteer OT for MV and Recording staff. MV has some level of OT most months and again dependent on what is needed. An average of approximately 34 hours per month. Elections has required OT during election periods and this varies on what is needed.

El Paso County There is no mandatory overtime. Elections and IS work overtime during the election season as needed, and motor vehicle staff are given the opportunity to work extra hours during elections.

Jefferson County Overtime is not mandatory, but asked for when the need arises. All C&R employees are required to work on Elections Day which does mandate overtime. Employees closing Motor Vehicle locations stay until all customers are helped after the doors are closed. On extreme busy days, the manager may request the earlier shifts to stay. Occasionally OT on Saturdays is offered or employees who flex may work 4 hours on their flex day. When needed, we have had enough volunteers OT has not become mandatory

Larimer County In Vehicle Licensing, Recording and Administration: Preplanned OT is rare and is typically for all‐ staff type meetings/trainings that cannot be accomplished when customers are present. Staff are committed to in‐the‐ moment OT, if there is urgency on a particular day. In VL and Recording, customers who are in line at 5p are waited on before staff end the day. Typically this means no more than 15 minutes after hours or so, but is not every single day. In Elections, staff are expected to work overtime as is required to successfully prepare for and accomplish the election.

Mesa County We do not require overtime, but often have it as a result of ‘busy times’. Motor Vehicle has mandatory OT to catch up liens once in a great while, Elections has mandatory OT each election.

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8. Are vacant positions in your office always posted on your County’s jobs board? Are these positions required to receive a certain number of applicants before they can be hired? Adams County Yes, positions are always posted on our county website. No we are not required to have a certain number before they can be hired.

Boulder County When we post a position for the public yes they are on our website. If we promote from within these are not posted. We do not require a minimum number of applicants to proceed. We need one or two good people and will post and interview until we hire these people.

El Paso County Unless the position is posted internally, jobs are always posted on the County job board. There is no requirement for positions to receive a number of applicants before they can be hired for.

Jefferson County Yes, all vacant positions are always posted on our County’s job boards and no minimal number of applicants are required.

Larimer County Job opportunities are posted on our county’s website. There is no requirement for the number of applicants before hiring. Note: We often hire temporaries who are then wavered into FTE positions that become open, providing an already trained individual to fill the vacancy. Temp opportunities are not always posted, as third‐ party employment agencies are sometimes used.

Mesa County Yes they are always posted. No there is not a minimum.

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9. How much training do new hires in your office receive? Adams County MV‐ 5 weeks in class and ongoing. Recording‐ 6‐9 months for all the stages. Temps‐ 1 week. Elections‐ 1 week.

Boulder County MV: minimum of 3 months intense training. Advance training is done in shorter bursts. We reduced training from 6 months to 3 months and although successful continued tweaking to ensure success is required. Recording: minimum of 4.5 months. We reduced training from over a year to 4.5 months and although successful continued tweaking to ensure success is required.

El Paso County The answer depends on the department, and position.

Jefferson County Recording Extensive Training in all areas of the division CTB Extensive Training in all areas of division – including passport training through the Department of State Motor Vehicle new hires spend 2 ½ to 3 months in our training classroom and then an additional 1 to 3 months sitting with/next to a lead worker. Elections Extensive Training in all area of the division. Additionally, staff completes training for certification through the Secretary of State’s office and for higher level management CERA certification can be obtained. All staff is cross trained on certain job duties in Motor Vehicle so they can assist during off season election time and busy spring/summer MV time.

Larimer County Depends upon the position. VL training is typically 6 to 8 weeks.

Mesa County Different offices have different levels of training. Motor vehicle has a ‘training period’ whereas other departments train somewhat ‘on the job’.

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10. How does your office track backlogs (e.g. how long mailed title applications take to be processed, or number of received but unprocessed pieces of mail)? Adams County Boulder County Doc tracking in Use document tracking for CSTARS and incoming as well as other spreadsheets. title applications Supervisors and managers monitor the mortgage area to ensure each branch stays within the 5 to 7 day expectation. We do not meet this expectation on average and voluntary and mandatory OT is used to catch up Coordinator maintains a spreadsheet to track number of unworked mortgages left in office each day.

El Paso County Upon receipt of title work from dealers, lenders or title companies it’s sent to our Motor Vehicle Operation Dept. It’s kept in day order and issued to our branch offices to process. Motor Vehicle Operations Dept. and the branch offices track the title backlog on a shared spread sheet kept in a common drive. The spreadsheet lists amount sent to MV Ops, received, completed, carried over and oldest date. An email is sent daily to update Management and Supervisory team. It looks like this:

Jefferson County Motor Vehicle: Management at each office location log the number of chattels in office on a centralized calendar

Larimer County Recordings are recorded and verified same day – there is no backlog. VL mail is entered into the doc tracking system and monitored. With the Processing Center and staff focused on VL back‐ office paperwork, we are often doing yesterday’s mail today, and a more than five‐day backlog is rare.

Mesa County The paperwork is filed in date order, worked in date order so by a glance in the drawer we know how many dates we are out. We rarely pull paperwork to be done out of order.

[example below from El Paso County]

Wednesday

7/12/2017 OPS Downtown Main Fort Carson North Southeast

Sent to Ops

Received Completed

Carried Over

Oldest Date

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11. How does your office track wait times? If you have wait time data, please provide it with your response. Adams County MV & Recording has Q Matic. Elections is manual.

Boulder County For Motor Vehicle: We use NEMO‐Q to monitor and track wait times Average wait time in the Boulder Branch is 35 minutes (based on last 6 months & 9 new employees) Longmont Branch is 12 minutes (based on last 6 months) Lafayette Branch is 5 to 7 minutes (based on last 6 months)

El Paso County We track wait‐ time with our queuing system Q‐Flow. It breaks it down by office, technician, and function.

Jefferson County Motor Vehicle is the only division that tracks wait times. Our lobby management system NEMO‐Q is in four of our five locations. The management in each office has access to real time data, including wait times, how many numbers are out, service time, types of service… The director has the larger statistic program that can pull various reports back to our inception of NEMO. Attached is a high‐level example of a NEMO report ‐ you can drill down farther to include individual clerk information. **Please note: The Manager and Supervisor docs do not count in the office total ‐ The leads are given +10 on their stat formula and the State rejects are figured on title transactions only. The list is on the 2017 total office sheet

Larimer County We do not track wait times in Recording. In VL, we utilize a lobby management system that automatically tracks the number of customers waiting, the wait time for each, and the service time for each. Thus far, in 2017, our average wait time for walk‐in renewals is approximately 13 minutes and for walk‐ in non‐renewals is approximately 18 minutes. In‐the‐ moment wait times can be accessed at Larimer.org/waittime.

Mesa County We have a check‐in kiosk that produced wait time data for motor vehicle customers. Average Motor Vehicle Wait Times: January 26 minutes, February 40 minutes, March 53 minutes, April 52 minutes, May 81 minutes, June 87 minutes, July 69 minutes. In 2016 our average wait time was 17 minutes for the year. In December of 2016 we laid off 4 deputy clerks and closed two branch motor vehicle offices. Our wait times have been hard to deal with for our customers and our staff since.

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12. Does your office have performance standards for employees in Recording (e.g. number of documents to be recorded per day; number of mistakes allowed per day)? If so, what are they? Adams County Yes, percentage based on total amount recorded that day. No more than 2% errors. 12%‐18% of that days total.

Boulder County El Paso County Jefferson County Yes we do and I do [response on following Recording not have specifics at page] Not specifically how this time. many docs or mistakes, performance standards are addressed as they occur and in evaluations Motor Vehicle Yes, we base it off the number of transactions for each location. This allows for the clerk to be compared to their peers in the same office and not to an office that maybe be busier or slower. State rejects are a percentage of the number title transactions they do.

Larimer County Staff must maintain a 97% or better accuracy rate, and each is expected to average 200 documents per day, when volume warrants. All documents are processed same day – from recording to verifying, and all staff are committed to accomplishing this standard.

Mesa County Not formally but we do track quality and quantity of work in all divisions. We set expectations for lien processors for daily averages and review the results with the employees.

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El Paso County

RECORDING DEPARTMENT PRODUCTIVITY & ACCURACY STANDARDS ES= Exceeds standards SN=Sometimes not meeting standards SE=Sometimes exceeds standards FN =Frequently not meeting standards CM=Consistently meets standards I. FRONT COUNTER STANDARDS:  Cashiering‐Accuracy: Unexplained over/short during 12 month period In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o $0.00‐$4.99 $0.00‐$3.99 ES o $5.00‐$9.99 $4.00‐$7.99 SE CM o $10.00‐$29.99 $8.00‐$19.99 SN o $30.00‐$34.99 $20.00‐$24.99 FN o $35.00 + $25.00+ Cashiering Accuracy Rate during 12 month period (checks made out incorrectly, incorrect recap sheet, audit error‐cash, etc) In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 99.5%‐100% 100% ES o 98.1%‐99.4% 99.3%‐99.9%

CM o 97.0%‐98.0% 98.8%‐99.2% o 95.6%‐96.9% 98.1%‐98.7% SN o 0‐95.5% 0‐98% FN  Cashiering‐Productivity: In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 313+ OPR Documents/ 375+ OPR Documents / ES 9 + Marriages avg. per day 11 + Marriages avg. per day o 225‐312 OPR Documents/ 275‐374 OPR Documents/ SE 7‐8 Marriages avg. per day 9‐10 Marriages avg. per day o 174‐224 OPR Documents/ 200‐274 OPR Documents/ CM 4‐6 Marriages avg. per day 6‐8 Marriages avg. per day SN o 88‐173 OPR Documents/ 100‐199 OPR Documents/ 2‐3 Marriages avg. per day 4‐5 Marriages avg. per day Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐26

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o 0‐87 OPR Documents 0‐99 OPR Documents FN 0‐1 Marriages avg. per day 0‐3 Marriages avg. per day Please note: Other factors must be considered such as additional activities cashier may beengaged in (i.e. special projects, indexing, mail, etc.) Numbers may vary also based on cmbination of document recording and marriages and documents available for recording as well as complexity of transactions.

II. INDEXING/VERIFICATION STANDARDS: Indexing Accuracy

In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 96%+ 97% + ES o 93.0%‐95.9% 95%‐96.9% SE o 89.2%‐92.9% 90%‐94.9% CM o 87.1%‐89.1% 89.1%‐89.9% SN o 0‐87% 0‐89% FN  Indexing Productivity: In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 317+ avg. documents per day 365 + avg. documents per day ES o 236‐316 avg. documents per day 265‐364 avg. documents per day SE o 181‐235 avg. documents per day 201‐264 avg. documents per day CM o 91‐180 avg. documents per day 101‐200 avg. documents per day SN o 0‐90 avg. documents per day 0‐100 avg. documents per day FN  Verification Productivity: Experienced (3 year plus) Rating o 750 + avg. documents per day ES Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐27

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o 550‐749 avg. documents per day SE CM o 400‐549 avg. documents per day SN o 200‐399 avg. documents per day o 0‐199 avg. documents per day FN Please note: Other factors must be considered such as additional tasks indexer is performing (i.e. answering phones, special projects, mail). Numbers may vary also based on the combination of indexing and verification performed.

III. COPY AREA STANDARDS:  Cashiered Copies‐Accuracy: Unexplained over/short during 12 month period In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 yeas plus) Rating o 0‐$2.50 $0.00‐$2.00 ES o $2.51‐$5.00 $2.01‐$4.00 SE o $5.01‐$7.50 $4.01‐$6.00 CM o $7.51‐10.00 $6.01‐$8.00 SN o $10.01+ $8.01 + FN Cashiering Accuracy Rate during 12 month period (checks made out incorrectly, incorrect recap sheet, audit error‐cash, etc) In Training (0 months‐ 3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 97.6%‐100% 98.6%‐100% ES o 95.1%‐97.5% 97.1%‐98.5% SE o 92.6%‐95% 95.6%‐97% CM o 87.1%‐92.5% 94.1%‐95.5% SN o 0‐87% 0‐ 94% FN  Copies‐Productivity In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 37 + Copies avg. per day 47 + Copies avg. per day ES o 26‐36 Copies avg. per day 36‐46 Copies avg. per day SE o 20‐25 Copies avg. per day 30‐35 Copies avg. per day CM o 11‐19 Copies avg. per day 16‐29 Copies avg. per day SN o 0‐10 Copies avg. per day 0‐15 Copies avg. per day FN

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Please note: Other factors must be considered such as additional activities cashier may be taking part in (i.e. special projects, indexing, mail, etc.) Numbers may vary also based on combination of customer request and searches.

IV. IMAGING STANDARDS:  Imaging Accuracy QC’d OPR Pages‐Imaging accuracy rate during 12 month period In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 99.96%‐100% 99.98%‐100% ES o 99.93% ‐99.95% 99.95%‐99.97% SE o 99.90% ‐99.92% 99.92%‐99.94% CM o 99.8% ‐99.89% 99.89%‐99.91% SN o 0 ‐ 99.86% 0‐99.88% FN  Imaging errors during 12 month period (missed pulls, missed beginning and end documents, etc.) In Training (0 months‐ 3 years)

Experienced (3 years plus) Rating

o 0‐2 Occurrences 0 Occurrences ES o 3‐5 Occurrences 1‐3 Occurrences SE o 6‐8 Occurrences 4‐6 Occurrences CM o 9‐11 Occurrences 7‐9 Occurrences SN o 12+ Occurrences 10+ Occurrences FN  Imaging Productivity Scanned OPR Pages In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 1300 + pages avg. per day 1751+ pages avg. per day ES o 1000‐1300 pages avg. per day 1300‐1750 pages avg. per day SE o 600‐999 pages avg. per day 900‐1299 pages avg. per day CM o 300‐599 pages avg. per day 451‐899 pages avg. per day SN o 0‐300 pages avg. per day 0‐450 pages avg. per day FN Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐29

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QC’D OPR Pages In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 1301 + pages avg. per day 1751+ pages avg. per day ES o 1000‐1300 pages avg. per day 1300‐1750 pages avg. per day SE o 600‐999 pages avg. per day 900‐1299 pages avg. per day CM o 301‐599 pages avg. per day 451‐899 pages avg. per day SN o 0‐300 pages avg. per day 0‐450 pages avg. per day FN Scanned Marriage Pages In Training (0 months‐3 years) Experienced (3 years plus) Rating o 24+ pages avg. per day 36+ pages avg. per day ES o 19‐23 pages avg. per day 25‐35 pages avg. per day SE o 9‐18 pages avg. per day 15‐24 pages avg. per day CM o 5‐8 pages avg. per day 9‐14 pages avg. per day SN o 0‐4 pages avg. per day 0‐8 pages avg. per day FN Please note: Other factors must be considered such as additional activities technician may be taking part in (i.e. special projects, splicing, etc.)

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13. How is your office preparing for the transition to the DRIVES system? Adams County Updating current training materials. Receiving “Journey” newsletters. 1 FTE is working with DRIVES.

Boulder County ‐ We have a SME working with DRIVES for 18 months ‐ We have a staff person working FAC committee ‐ Our Clerk is working with a variety of groups ‐ We have regular meetings to track progress and areas we want to ensure our SME, FAC member or Clerk should highlight to those who can make a change/impact ‐ We are providing regular updates to staff and incorporating some basic change management principals ‐ Creating excitement ‐ Working with concerns ‐ We are reviewing our practices with Dealers and planning (not yet implemented) ways to support and improve Dealer needs and requirements

El Paso County Currently, we have two employees participating as subject matter experts. One is full‐ time the other is part‐time (two days a week). We are investigating the opportunity to send additional employees as Expert Users and full and part‐time Testers with minimum of one employee from each branch office. We are participating in the remote testing. We share DRIVES updates with all staff and the training will be conducted within our County. We participate in the DRIVES Requirements and Clarification Work Group.

Jefferson County We have one full‐ time employee on the DRIVES project now; we are sending our trainer in January full‐time; and our staff IT Administrator will be spending some time there testing. We have volunteered 5 other employees to be testers for the 6‐ week period next spring. This will give us exposure and experience to 1‐2 employees in each of our office locations beyond the 3‐day training everyone will receive. This should allow the gain of experience to be able to help other staff when we go live.

Larimer County We have had a staff member dedicated full time to assisting with development at the DOR since April of 2017. This staff member provides formal regular updates and is in communication with our VL Managers often during each week. We have had dedicated accounting staff time at the DOR to assist with the development of the financial interface two days a week since May 2017. We have committed to dedicating a trainer who will begin working full time with DOR staff in December 2017. And we will be dedicating in‐ office staff to assist with testing on and off, as needed, in 2018. Regular DOR communications regarding DRIVES progress are fully shared with all staff as this effort progresses. Development of a “roll‐out” plan is underway.

Mesa County We have our motor vehicle trainer working in Denver for 18 months on one of the state’s teams. Our Clerk serves as Carly does on the DRIVES Steering Committee and participates in about 5 other working groups who are doing DRIVES conversion work.

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14. Does your office have emergency “active shooter” trainings or drills? Adams County Yes.

Boulder County We have had active shooter training once and there are no drills planned.

El Paso County There is information on what to do in case of an active shooter available to staff. Additionally, active shooter trainings and drills are conducted by the county security office.

Jefferson County Our Sheriff’s office conducts “active shooter” training and all employees are encouraged to attend. At this time all current employees have attended. This subject is also covered in our Election Judge’s training.

Larimer County We have not done formal “drills,” but we do converse about scenarios during staff meetings. Larimer County has a “Larimer Prepared” program that we fully participate in, but which is not managed by the Clerk & Recorder’s office.

Mesa County Yes, we have hosted a number of trainings from inside resources (PD, Sheriff, etc) and outside trainers.

15. When were the emergency alarms in your office last tested? Adams County The duress buttons were tested the beginning of June. They are checked quarterly.

Boulder County El Paso County Jefferson County Boulder: in July 2017: Fire Alarm Emergency alarms The County’s Facilities are tested Department schedules drill random alarm testing Longmont: May 2017: Fire alarm monthly. several time a year. drill Lafayette: no formal drill . They are in a shared building with non‐county staff and in a rented space. They recently had a need to evacuate the building and met all requirements and thus no fire drill planned.

Larimer County These types of tests are the responsibility of the Facilities Department and occur periodically.

Mesa County They are tested annually by the facilities department.

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16. Please provide a copy of your office’s cash handling procedures. Adams County Boulder County See attached. a. We use CTS (Cash tendering System) i. Staff use CTS to take in and dispense change b. Reports are run daily for every check, cash and credit card statements i. Tech counts their 100 bag for the next day (because they started with this amount) ii. End of day: 1. Match cash, check and credit card totals for what they have iii. Supervisors or Managers balance office deposit 1. They re‐count all cash: entire into spreadsheet which totals entire amount of cash thus another check 2. They verify check totals 3. They verify credit card transactions a. If they don’t match they work with the technician to correct error 4. Count entire deposit and prep for bank c. Staff expectation in general (not just cash) is to be less than $5 off d. Our bookkeeping department does not handle cash. This is intentional to ensure checks and balance and risk reduction.

El Paso County Jefferson County Procedures are in Attached the midst of being revised

Larimer County Mesa County (see attached) See attached for countywide policy.

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17. How is staff input considered, if at all, when the office is implementing new work flow procedures or policies? Adams County MV‐ work groups for flow. Branch council for reviewing and feedback. Staff with changed process is involved. Recording‐ Roll out quarterly. Each meeting talk about what happens next. All are involved or key people to that process. Elections‐ All staff has input.

Boulder County Motor Vehicle We try to involve our staff when appropriate in reviewing and implementing changes in our office. Policy changes ‐ we will review and discuss the new policy with staff in team or staff meeting. Example: i. Temporary permit policy – we talked to our staff to see where they wanted clarity and used that information to update the policy. Procedural changes – several of our procedural changes have come from ideas presented by our staff. We encourage staff to help us look for efficient ways of serving the public. Depending on the type of change or idea a focus group consisting of staff from all three branches is created. They look at the outcome we want to achieve, what is the impact to staff/office and time frame it would take to implementation. Recording We present the new ideas to the staff, and we listen to their input and act accordingly with what they had to say. Often have a morning meeting to review ideas and improvements A variety of ideas from staff have been implemented: i. Staff assist to ensure work is completed during the day

El Paso County This is usually dependent on specific managers/supervis ors.

Jefferson County Recording Staff input is solicited and considered CTB Team collaboration is encouraged on all procedures and practices. Motor Vehicle Management uses an open‐door policy. Staff can offer ideas which managers can try at their location and if it turns out beneficial the manager will share the information on the monthly manger’s meeting. Some input may need to be forwarded to the Director level and discussed. Elections Management uses an open‐door policy. Collaboration and staff input is solicited during weekly team meetings.

Larimer County Staff input is paramount and occurs both formally and informally. However, it is understood that they provide ideas and thoughts, but management is responsible for the decision making. We have a demonstrated culture of innovation in this office that is celebrated and that all staff take pride in. The result has been unprecedented efficiency and customer satisfaction. Nimble office management is always evolving and staff interface during this evolutionary process (in all departments) is an ongoing reality

Mesa County We have implemented Peak Performance to create working groups to address problems identified by the department’s employees. We also hold quarterly check‐ ins and annual discussions with every employee to get feedback on improvements we could make.

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ii. Staff help with balancing when needed iii. Staff help with training iv. Improvements to SOPs come from staff including efficiency improvements Elections Staff have considerable input in process and improvements They are heavily involved through planning , writing SOPs, meeting with teams and creating best practices and support improvements At the end of the year and beginning of new year; a debrief is conducted and a plan of where to focus changes and improvements are created. Staff helps to develop plans and get alignment from Election Coordinator and Clerk.

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

18. Please provide an inventory of your voting equipment, including make, model, date of manufacture/acquisition. (Voting equipment includes ballot marking devices, voting booths, ballot scanners, and other hardware.) Adams County See attached.

Boulder County See attached document

El Paso County IXC (Imaging Cast X) Ballot Marking Devices – 30 ICVA (Image Cast Voter Activation) – 10 Election Manager System (EMS) Servers – 2 EMS Clients – 2 ICC (Image Cast Central) Workstations – 6 each Ballot Scanners – 6 each Adjudication Workstations – 4 each

Jefferson County Jefferson County is moving to Dominion Voting systems in 2017‐ the information you are seeking is unavailable at this time.

Larimer County Larimer County has just purchased the new Uniform Voting System for implementation in 2017 (Dominion Democracy Suite).

Mesa County All equipment purchased in 2016 after UVS process. 4 ICC stations 3 Adjudication Stations 27 ICX stations 1 Full Server 2 EMS stations (1 main and 1 backup)

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

Boulder County

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

19. Do you provide wifi access to the public waiting in your offices? Adams County Yes

Boulder County Yes we do

El Paso County Yes.

Jefferson County Yes, Jefferson County offers guest wi‐fi. It usually come up when signing on as Jeffco Guest with no required password. But flyers are posted and staff can provide the information

Larimer County Yes

Mesa County Yes, there is public wifi in the building

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20. Has your office achieved any operational efficiencies from revising transaction policies and procedures (for example, regarding motor vehicle title processing, issuing marriage certificates, etc.)? Adams County Yes

Boulder County

El Paso County

Jefferson County Motor Vehicle Motor Vehicle: Recording Yes, we have seen an a. Incorporated Streamlined with increase in productivity online marriage document tracking application program to track all title with processed CTB titles...i.e. mortgage paperwork coming in Streamlining mail to reduce our and going out of our passport backlog. Each Motor office. appointment b. Incorporated the use Vehicle Tech must process using process 5 to 8 titles of a cash tendering electronic system to ensure funds daily. calendaring with are accurately collected Additionally, we have implemented a pay for email from the public. confirmation. c. Reduced our training performance bonus This will go live program from 6 months program. MV with our new employees need to to 3 months obtain and sustain County website d. Created an Information Desk in our specified productivity, in September. Boulder Office so the quality, and attendance Motor Vehicle public does not have to metrics to earn the Online fee wait just to ask a bonus. This helps to estimator – will question ensure transactions are go live with our e. Created a floater processed timely and new County position to cover offices accurately, which also website in when staffing levels are assists in reducing September. low to reduce public customer wait‐times. Elections wait time. Recording Wait times f. Promoting online When we migrated to posted during renewals by creating t‐ our new recording the open VSPC shirt staff wear to system (Aumentum) hours. advertise this feature we offer on‐line and focus on last marriage

Larimer County

Mesa County

Absolutely! C&R staff entirely revamped our website to make it more user‐friendly. It has become the theory behind the countywide website makeover now underway. We hired a CSU intern for approximately 6 weeks to develop a C&R plan for social media interface with our citizens that is now a “plug and play,” nimble process for disseminating information. In Elections, efficiency was enhanced by the purchase of automated extraction equipment for the removal of voted ballot envelope contents. Ballot drop boxes (24‐hour) were installed at each of our VL offices in the county. A “Vote Larimer” logo was developed and trademarked. This provides an important visual queue for our citizens regarding all Larimer Elections activities and helps alleviate confusion. In VL, we did not hire any additional staff to

We regularly work on process improvements and implement changes. Our new Peak Performance program has already realized improvements in wait times and noise levels in the Motor Vehicle office

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Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

Adams County

Boulder County

El Paso County

business day of the month g. Installed a Motor Vehicle Express Renewal Kiosk to reduce public wait time h. Create an online reference folder so technicians have important information at their finger tips i. We accept insurance via phone/email/fax to expedite the transaction for the public j. Call dealers to correct minor paperwork issues instead of returning them to the dealer k. Translated some internal forms from Spanish to English for the convenience of the public l. Installed a lobby management system that effectively and efficiently moves the public through the office m. Allow public to renew over the phone n. Incorporated the use of email to communicate with

applications. This shaves about 5‐7 minutes off of our marriage application processing time. In addition, we utilize “Automatic Indexing” when indexing documents. The Recording system pulls pre‐defined information from documents and indexes this information for us. Therefore, we spend less time indexing and spend more time verifying data. This allows us to have our index available to the public by the next business day (usually by 2:00pm). Finally, to minimize public from visiting our office, we offer an on‐line subscription based search of our records. This allows our “regular” customers the freedom to look at our index and images on‐line as

Jefferson County

Larimer County

Mesa County

accommodate the dramatically increased volume, until the Processing Center, noted below, was developed. Four additional staff were hired at that time. After “idea meetings” with VL staff, “low hanging fruit” ideas (small and large) were implemented. These included customer/transaction specific changes as well as staff comfort/convenience/quality‐ of‐life changes. Too numerable to mention. Larger examples in VL include: •Lobby Liaison – When the lobby looks full and/or wait times exceed 30 minutes or so, staff are assigned to interface with those waiting citizens to ensure they have everything they need to successfully complete their transaction. Waiting customers are also informed about other options that would eliminate or greatly reduce their wait time. As Clerk, I often interface with waiting customers – especially if I am available and we need “all hands on deck” to manage the work. Much of the win here is seen in improved Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐41

Appendix B: Full Results of Benchmarking Survey

Adams County

Boulder County

El Paso County

public on transactions. Reduces time in playing phone tag. o. We recommend to DOR/CSTARS group and was adopted: One in the Same: computer automatically do a One in the Same statement Recording a. Increased E‐Recording b. All Recording staff trained in all aspects of the work and can support any area or anyone in need of assistance c. SOPs are written well and followed i. Process in place to review SOPs d. Records are digitized e. Cleaned up decades of different ways/wording to record and retrieve documents f. Provide Rec. services at our branch offices g. Created a feature to offer escrow account holders the option to save, print and email documents from our

well print images if they have created an escrow account that they can draw off of. FYI…we don’t offer our images to the general public, only to our customers that sign‐up for our on‐line subscription program and sign a contract.

Jefferson County

Larimer County

Mesa County

customer attitudes – they feel cared about. •Appointment Feature (first in the state innovation by Larimer), which won the Larimer County Innovation Award in 2016. This process is fully automated and integrates directly with our lobby management system in the same way as walk‐in customers. No dedicated staff, instead the lobby system automatically assigns these transactions to line staff in real time. •Processing Center – took paperwork backlog from a matter of weeks to a matter of days and enhanced customer experience when calling the office. •Phone Tag – A wide variety of transactions are now accomplished for our customers over the phone. This process includes technical automation that provides a way for us to receive the proper documentation while the citizen is on the phone with our tech. This innovation won the second place Larimer County Innovation Award in Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐42

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Adams County

Boulder County

El Paso County

Jefferson County

website. This new procedure avoids the need of having to email us requesting copies of documents and waiting for us to process your request. Another great benefit is that, if desired, you can select the pages you need instead of having to pay for all the pages of a document. This new feature saved us hours a day processing requests for the public. h. Public being able to print documents online. A great benefit to obtain copies of records afterhours, and saving hours of staff being on the phone processing the requests. i. Worked with County Fusion to create a way to import large files, such as plats, when the email size limit was an issue. Before this, we were not able to email the plats without having to spend a lot of time dividing and

Larimer County

Mesa County

2017. •Customer surveys are not new, but we have enhanced the options for getting us their thoughts – i.e., QR code pointing to an online survey, etc. •We are scheduled to begin our pilot of the VL Renewal Kiosk later this month. •Additional innovations are in the planning stages as we speak. Had we done “business as usual” in VL without these innovations, and considering the dramatic volume increases since 2013, we would have needed to hire conservatively more than 14 FTEs. We are accomplishing reduced wait times and higher volumes with the addition of only the four positions noted above. In Recording, we have accomplished a system conversion and implemented public access to recorded documents on‐line. This includes automated payment options for prepaid accounts and in‐the‐moment purchases. Additionally, we provide a fee estimator that is available on‐ Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC B‐43

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Adams County

Boulder County

El Paso County

Jefferson County

compressing the file. j. Complete marriage applications on line

Larimer County

Mesa County

line for our citizens. Staff growth opportunities have been dramatically increased, as knowledge base for other processes (besides marriage licenses and/or document recording) is expanded. This ensures no break in service when a “key” staff person is out or leaves – we have a bench of knowledge.

21. Does the Motor Vehicle division have a mail processing center or operation? Adams County Boulder County Yes We do not have a ‘mail processing center’ and we do have a way of operating. Boulder County Motor Vehicle has an operational process: [described below]

El Paso County Our Motor Vehicle Operations Dept. disperses titles to the branch offices, as well as tracks the title and registration renewal backlog. They also over see our phone bank, complete title batching, lockbox/internet renewals, title corrections, VIN edits, non‐post errors, and label/scan security agreements

Jefferson County We do not have a mail processing center. We have requested our Commissioners via a budget business plan for one, but to this date the request has been denied. All Motor Vehicle mail is received at the Golden location. It is a rotating duty for one staff member – stamping logging, etc. Each location is sent some mail on an almost daily basis with the majority being handled by the Golden staff.

Larimer County See previous comments about the Processing Center.

Mesa County No, there is not a separate mail processing center. It is handled through the call center

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Boulder County response: Mail processing operational process Mortgage Process: 

Standard Operating Procedure for our mortgage process is no more than 7 to 10 days of unworked mortgages on the shelf. The expectation for staff is to complete a minimum of 5 mortgages a day in‐between assisting the public. o Over 7 days:  Schedule a staff member to work mortgages – expectation is to work up 20 mortgages in 2 hours.  Managers/Coordinator assists in working up mortgages o Over 10 days:  Implement mandatory overtime.  Options: o Coming in an hour early o Staying after hours o Working on Saturday to work up, not enter mortgages. o Managers/Coordinator assists in working up mortgages

Daily Process:     

Mortgages received daily by FedEx, UPS, USPS and dealer drop offs are entered into Document Tracking. This process can take 2 to 3hours depending on how much mail we receive that day. (Open, date stamp, and enter). We track date mortgage was received, who sent the mortgage, and who the owner/driver of the vehicle is. Mortgages entered into document tracking are stored in bins on shelves in our mortgage area. Each mortgage bin is labeled with the date the mortgages were received. Bins are placed on the shelf from oldest to newest. Daily staff signs out mortgages to work on. Mortgages are taken from the oldest date and placed into a colored folder. Colored folder makes it easier identify unprocessed mortgages on a staff members desk. Staff works up (reviews) the mortgage documents and either process the mortgage through CSTARS (title complete card sent to owner) or reject the mortgage documents. o Rejection protocol: when errors are found our staff follows this protocol:  Call dealer, lienholder, or tag agency to obtain information needed to correct and complete the title process

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  

Fax dealer, lienholder, or tag agency by FAX to obtain information needed to correct and complete the process Email dealer, lienholder, or tag agency to obtain information needed to correct and complete the process. Contact the owner of the vehicle and have them make the correction(s). We will either send a letter or call if we can locate a telephone number. We let them know their paperwork is in our office and invite them to come in to complete the title process  Last resort – mortgage paperwork is mailed back to the dealer, lienholder, or tag agency to make the corrections. All rejected mortgage paperwork is entered into document tracking. We track:  who rejected the mortgage,  reason for rejection,  Location of mortgage paperwork:  Returned to dealer, lienholder, or tag agency  Placed in our bottom file waiting for dealer, lienholder, or tag agency to send us what we need or waiting for the vehicle owner to come in.

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Appendix C: Additional Analysis of Big 10 Counties Survey At the suggestion of the Director of Finance and Administration and several County Commissioners, the project team reviewed the results of the Big 10 Counties survey, which is a collection of data produced by ten large counties in Colorado: Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, Mesa, Pueblo, and Weld Counties. These counties are the largest counties by population in Colorado excluding the City and County of Denver. Surveys are available for each year starting in 2005 through 2016. The data is based on adopted budgets provided by participating counties, but the survey cautions that comparisons are not exact and further investigation and analysis would be needed to make exact comparisons. Nevertheless, the information can be used for benchmarking and to identify overall trends across counties and similarities and differences among counties. Weld County typically presents information and data from the Big 10 Counties survey in its annual adopted budget. The following tables present the backup figures presented in Exhibits 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5 in Section 1: Organizational Structure and Staffing Levels.

Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 Vehicle Registrations Exhibit 1.3 displays the number of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 vehicle registrations in each of the counties included in the survey. The figures in the table below were taken from the graphs that accompany each survey year.

Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 Vehicle Registrations County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo Weld

15.1 15.1 20.7 16.3 15.5 16.8 12.4

14.1 17.5 20.6 15.6 16.6 16.4 13.1 12.1 10.5 7.3

14.9 15.6 20.2 15.0 15.6 7.7 11.8 11.8 12.4 6.7

16.3 16.0 19.6 16.1 14.8 14.9 12.9 12.7 13.1 6.6

18.6 15.9 19.6 15.8 17.6 15.0 12.7 12.3 12.8 6.5

17.1 16.5 19.5 15.6 15.8 14.9 12.7 11.5 12.9 6.8

20.4 15.6 19.3 12.1 15.7 14.9 12.2 9.8

18.6 13.9 19.1 11.9 14.6 14.2 11.1 9.9 11.0 6.0

17.9 13.8 18.7 12.9 11.0 13.8 11.1 11.0 14.2 6.5

13.6 16.2 18.3 11.1 14.2 13.6 11.2 10.9

13.4 15.3 17.9 14.1 13.8 13.2 11.0 10.8 12.7 6.7

15.7 17.7 17.5 13.6 15.0 13.9 11.7 10.7 15.9 6.1

7.7

7.0

6.4

Source: Big 10 Counties survey, graph generator

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Appendix C: Additional Analysis of Big 10 Counties Survey

Recording FTEs per 100,000 Documents Recorded Exhibit 1.4 displays the number of Motor Vehicle FTEs per 100,000 documents recorded in each of the counties included in the survey. These figures were calculated by the project staff using two data points from the Big 10 Counties survey: Recording FTEs, and Documents Recorded.

Recording FTEs County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo Weld

12.0 22.0 14.5 11.0 15.0 24.0 15.0 10.0

12.0 20.0 14.5 10.5 18.0 24.0 19.0 11.0 14.0 7.0

12.0 18.0 14.5 10.5 16.0 24.0 20.0 11.0 7.0 10.0

12.0 17.0 14.5 9.5 15.0 22.0 16.0 7.0 7.0 10.0

10.0 17.0 14.0 9.5 14.0 22.0 16.0 7.0 10.0

9.0 16.0 14.0 9.0 12.0 22.0 17.0 7.0 7.0 8.5

9.0 13.0 14.0 8.0 12.0 22.0 17.0 6.0 6.0 8.5

8.0 13.0 13.0 8.0 12.0 17.0 16.0 6.0 6.0 8.0

7.0 13.0 13.0 8.0 13.0 17.0 16.0 6.0 6.0 8.0

9.5 14.0 13.0 8.0 13.0 17.0 14.0 6.0 6.0 8.0

8.0 14.0 12.0 8.0 13.0 17.0 12.0 6.0 6.0 8.0

8.5 14.0 12.0 10.0 13.0 16.0 11.0 6.0 5.0 7.0

2009

Source: Big 10 Counties survey

Documents Recorded County Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo Weld

2005

2006

2007

2008

155,365

145,551

135,494

63,826

272,131

191,252

169,276

175,000

2010

63,826 134,781

193,795

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

96,794

88,941

85,000

115,231

85,814

98,464

136,235

129,540

147,358

153,746

122,978

149,377

111,291

93,404

78,189

75,826

69,111

79,806

72,649

69,867

83,437

80,963

60,430

73,308

168,092

125,692

110,888

100,780

87,982

102,285

95,174

84,789

102,638

100,872

78,287

94,992

215,111

207,310

188,704

165,603

151,000

150,587

135,516

131,805

157,392

153,576

121,600

141,379

292,785

181,918

155,400

141,381

116,606

130,314

120,440

118,722

140,973

148,064

111,694

138,385

125,818

111,461

98,016

96,797

82,320

90,208

83,978

82,146

93,659

75,871

88,057

62,985

61,518

62,304

47,303

40,203

38,058

43,039

39,442

32,412

36,524

90,458

53,739

44,937

40,733

46,990

85,629

34,753

31,163

18,568

105,586

110,569

85,632

82,111

71,138

76,193

76,545

76,927

84,068

84,126

78,043

97,326

Source: Big 10 Counties survey

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Appendix C: Additional Analysis of Big 10 Counties Survey

Recording FTEs per 100,000 Documents Recorded County

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo Weld

7.7 8.1 13.0 6.5 7.0 8.2 11.9 9.5

8.2 10.5 15.5 8.4 8.7 13.2 17.0 17.5 15.5 6.3

8.9 10.6 18.5 9.5 8.5 15.4 20.4 17.5 13.0 11.7

18.8 9.7 19.1 9.4 9.1 15.6 16.5 11.4 15.6 12.2

15.7 12.6 8.3 20.3 17.5 10.8 8.8 9.3 8.0 18.9 16.9 19.4 18.8 11.2 14.8 14.9 14.1 11.2

9.3 9.5 19.3 8.4 8.9 18.3 20.2 14.9 11.1

9.0 10.0 18.6 9.4 9.1 14.3 19.5 15.8 7.0 10.4

8.2 8.8 15.6 7.8 8.3 12.1 19.5 13.9 17.3 9.5

8.2 9.1 16.1 7.9 8.5 11.5 14.9 15.2 9.5

9.3 11.4 19.9 10.2 10.7 15.2 15.8 18.5 19.3 10.3

8.6 9.4 16.4 10.5 9.2 11.6 12.5 16.4 26.9 7.2

Source: Big 10 Counties survey and HMR calculations [=(FTEs/Documents)*100,000]

Elections FTEs per 100,000 Residents Exhibit 1.5 displays the number of Elections FTEs per 100,000 residents in each of the counties included in the survey. The figures in the table below were taken from the graphs that accompany each survey year.

Elections FTEs per 100,000 Residents County Adams Arapahoe Boulder Douglas El Paso Jefferson Larimer Mesa Pueblo Weld

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2.2 2.5 2.2 3.8 2.0 2.8 5.4 1.7

2.4 2.5 3.1 3.2 3.1 2.8 4.2 3.8 4.5 1.7

2.6 2.5 3.4 3.1 2.9 3.0 5.0 3.6 4.5 2.1

2.5 2.6 3.6 3.4 2.8 3.2 4.9 3.7 4.6 2.0

3.1 2.5 3.2 3.3 2.7 3.1 4.8 3.5 5.1 2.0

2.9 2.2 3.2 3.4 2.2 3.5 4.7 2.7 4.4 1.9

2.9 2.6 3.1 3.1 1.9 3.5 3.4 2.0 5.0 1.9

2.8 2.5 3.5 3.6 1.7 3.0 3.4 2.0 5.0 1.9

3.0 2.5 3.4 3.6 1.5 3.0 3.3 2.0 5.0 1.9

3.2 2.4 3.4 3.5 1.5 2.9 3.6 3.3 5.6 1.9

2.9 2.4 3.8 3.5 1.5 2.7 3.7 3.3 5.6 1.9

3.1 2.4 4.0 3.8 1.5 2.7 3.6 3.3 5.5 1.7

Source: Big 10 Counties survey, graph generator

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC C‐3

Appendix D: Recording Fees As discussed in Section 2: Work Flow and Alignment, recording fees charged at the Weld County Clerk and Recorder’s Office are not as accessible as they could be. We recommended consolidating recording fees and presenting them together in accessible, easy‐to‐use tables on one webpage. The webpage should note the date of last revision and accepted forms of payment, particularly when forms of payment differ by fee type (for example, marriage license fees are only accepted in cash). The following are three examples we found of helpful fee information presented online by other Clerk and Recorder’s Offices in Colorado.

Harvey M. Rose Associates, LLC D‐1

ADAMS COUNT Y COLOR ADO CLERK & RECORDER’S OFFICE Recording Department Fee Schedule Recording Services

Letter or Legal Size Document Documentary Fees

First page of each document Each additional page Greater than $500.00

$ 13.00 $ 5.00 $0.10 per $1000

Maps, PUDs, and Oversized Documents

Less than $500.00 First page of each document

No additional fee $ 13.00

A state documentary fee is assessed only on documents conveying real property. If the sales consideration is… Documents larger than legal size are considered oversized. Adams County does not accept documents larger than 18” x 24” for recording

UCC Financing Statement – Paper Recording

UCC Financing Statement – Electronic Recording Federal Tax Documents

Each additional page

$ 10.00

1-2 pages 3 or more pages Unlimited pages Unlimited pages

$ 13.00 $ 18.00 $ 8.00 $ 8.00

Copy Services

Please send copy requests to Adams.RecordingCopies@adcogov.org Transaction of 3 pages or less FREE Transaction of 4 or more pages $0.25/page Certified Copies Per page $ 0.25 Certified copies cannot be sent electronically Certification $ 1.00/document Map Copies – Regular Size 8.5” x 11” Transaction of 3 pages or less FREE Transaction of 4 or more pages $0.25/page Map Copies – Plat Size 18” x 24” Per page $5.00 Emailed Copies Transaction of 3 pages or less FREE Transaction of 4 or more pages $0.25/page Search Report Grantee/Grantor Search Report $0.50/page Regular Copies

Marriage or Civil Union License Services Marriage License Civil Union License Certified Copies

Application and License Application and License Per page Certification First year Each additional year

Marriage/Civil Union Search

$30.00 $30.00 $ 0.25 $ 1.00/document $5.00 $2.00

Acceptable forms of payment: Cash, Check, or Debit/Credit Cards. Please use the following address when mailing copy requests or recording packages: Adams County Clerk and Recorder 4430 S Adams County Pkwy Suite E2400 Brighton, CO 80601 (720) 523-6020

Revised: January 1, 2017 D-2

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