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Post by Jim Wilson on Apr 27, 2006 6:30:11 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
County Court ClerkThe county court clerk, except for counties containing a first class city or consolidated local government, has the option of serving as clerk for the fiscal court. The fiscal court is to set the salary that is paid in monthly installments. If the fiscal court clerk does not keep minutes for the fiscal court, they are required to keep them in their office, including the county budget ordinances, and all county ordinances. The fiscal court clerk has a power of notary public in the exercise of the official duties of the office. The clerk also has the duty as licensing agent for state and county government and issues licenses and collects fees for a number of activities. This duty includes a time consuming duty to register motor vehicles to all residents living in the county. The county clerks are required to record all documents relating to real estate, liens, and use of personal property as collateral including to record and index instruments containing clauses of a mortgage under the name of the person causing it to be recorded. The county court clerk is also chair of the county board of elections and is entitled to vote on matters before the board. These records are public and are required to be kept in their office. The county court clerk also gets applications for voter registration, maintains custody of voter registration records and reports registrations to the state board of elections.
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Post by Jim Wilson on Apr 29, 2006 7:26:57 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
MagistratesA large part of county government are magistrates. To qualify for the office of justice of the peace or magistrate, the candidate must be at least twenty-four years old at the time of his or her election, a citizen of Kentucky, a resident of the state for at least two years immediately preceding the election, and a resident of the county and district they are seeking to represent for at least one year immediately prior to election. They must remain in the district they represent during their term of office. The Attorney General in opinions OAG 77-774 and OAG 82-16 has cautioned that where the justices of the peace work only part-time in their official capacity, they may not qualify for the rubber dollar maximum salary and that the compensation of magistrates should be adjusted according to the number of hours devoted to county business during a normal week. Only where magistrates work full-time at county business can the maximum salary be justified. The fiscal court must appropriate county funds for various purposes required by law Additionally, the fiscal court is responsible for the construction, operation and maintenance of county buildings, roads and other property, maintaining a jail or by contracting with another county to provide jail space. The fiscal court is directed to adopt an administrative code for the county.
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Post by Jim Wilson on May 1, 2006 5:10:22 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
County AttorneyThe county attorney must attend the district court and prosecute all violations of criminal and penal law within the court's jurisdiction. The county attorney and the Commonwealth's attorney are required to cooperate in the enforcement of laws and, when necessary, to assist each other in prosecution within their respective courts. The county attorney is to carry out prosecutorial duties for the Commonwealth in the juvenile session of district court. Also, the county attorney is to serve as legal counsel for county government. Their general duties in this capacity are to attend the fiscal court and conduct all business of that body touching the rights or interests of the county. When the fiscal court so directs, the county attorney must conduct civil actions in which the county is a party before any of the courts of the Commonwealth. The county attorney is to supervise the payment of claims against the county treasury. When claims are approved by the fiscal court, the county attorney is responsible for opposing payment of illegal or unjust bills.
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Post by Jim Wilson on May 1, 2006 15:21:02 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
Circuit Court ClerkThe office of Circuit Court Clerk is elected for a six year term. Those who are candidates for the job must receive a passing grade of 70% or more on a written examination prepared and administered by the Administrative Office of the Courts. Circuit clerk offices vary in size from one clerk and one deputy clerk to 300 or more deputy clerks and administrative staff. The clerks of the trial courts keep a docket for each original action filed in that court and assign each such action a consecutive file number. All papers filed with the clerk are marked with the file number and noted chronologically in the docket on the page or pages of the docket assigned to the action. These notations show the nature of each paper filed or issued and the substance of each order or judgment. This process is maintained and secured in both paper and electronic records for the nearly one million actions filed in Kentucky courts each year.
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Post by Jim Wilson on May 4, 2006 15:10:07 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
Property Valuation Administrator (PVA)The PVA is subject to the direction, instruction and supervision of the Revenue Cabinet, a property valuation administrator must make the assessment of all property in the county, prepare property assessment records and perform such other duties relating to assessment as may be prescribed by law or by the Revenue Cabinet. The property valuation administrator assesses property for the state, the county, and other districts. The property valuation administrator assesses all property in the county, except as may otherwise be provided by law. Section 172 of the Kentucky Constitution states that all property not exempted from taxation must be assessed at fair cash value. Between January 1 and March 1 of each year, all persons owning or having any interest in any real property taxable in Kentucky are required by law to list or to have such property listed with the property valuation administrator of the county where it is located.
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Post by ClayLive on Jun 18, 2012 7:08:11 GMT -5
Editor's Note: This is part of a series of articles outlining the duties and qualifications of various elected officials.
County Judge-ExecutiveThe county judge-executive is the chief executive of the county, according to KRS 67.710. The duty of the judge/executive is to be charged with the execution of all ordinances and resolutions of the fiscal court as well as all contracts entered into by the fiscal court and all state laws. The judge-executive has been assigned the primary responsibility for the administration of county government. The judge-executive also is responsible for preparing the county budget. The judge-executive must include in the proposed county budget a proposed jail budget, which he prepares in cooperation with the jailer and the county treasurer. The person in office is required to keep the fiscal court advised of the financial needs and conditions of county officials whose offices utilize county funds, including all county boards, commissions and special districts who submit an annual financial report to the fiscal court. The judge-executive has authority to appoint, supervise, suspend, or remove county personnel, with fiscal court approval, unless state law states differently. Salaries for judge-executives in Kentucky are in nine categories and depend on the population of the county.
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