Kendall County to Defund Court Translator Position; office to keep job on paper

County Judge (presiding) proposed that the court remove funding for the translator position in the county judge's office, placing a $0 allocation on the line beginning Oct. 1 to bring the budget closer to balance.

The proposal matters because the translator position had been intended to provide court translation, notary duties and PBX backup. Court staff said the translator role had not fulfilled the original expectation of providing certified court translation and instead became a catchall administrative/notary position. The current staffing situation reportedly leaves the translator slot vacant, and the judge said defunding the position would not result in an immediate layoff.

During the discussion, County Judge said eliminating funding for the position would help “get us back to a balanced budget.” Corinna (county auditor/budget staff) explained the translator role’s history and that judicial budgets continue to include funds for outside translators; she described the in‑house position as having evolved into a notary/administrative backup. Corinna said the county could use automated phone backup for the PBX role and combine duties once the current PBX operator retires.

Acting General Counsel Nicole Bishop (acting legal counsel) clarified process questions: placing $0 in the budget means the county is “defunding” the position (no salary dollars budgeted) but the line and job remain on the salary schedule unless the court votes to eliminate the position entirely. Commissioners discussed keeping the job description on file and re‑establishing funding later if needed; one commissioner asked that any future re‑creation follow regular hiring and job‑description review procedures.

Clarifying details provided in the meeting: the translator slot had no incumbent at the time of the workshop (the last person in the post had moved to another county position), so commissioners emphasized the decision would not terminate an employee. County staff proposed moving the translator duties into an administrative/PBX operator role once Arlene (PBX operator) retires, consolidating services to save costs. The court did not take a formal recorded vote during the workshop; the budget direction recorded was to set the translator line to $0 starting Oct. 1 and to keep the position on the books until the court chooses to remove it permanently.

Officials said a formal elimination (removing the job from the salary scale) would require a separate court action. Commissioners asked that, if the county later seeks to fund a similar administrative role, the job description be rewritten and routed through the salary committee/hiring procedures to ensure clarity about duties and reporting.

The judge asked staff to reflect the $0 allocation in the next draft of the budget and to list the position among items to be reconsidered if circumstances change before final adoption.