Shelby County clerk urges release of $1.1 million for staff reclassifications, seeks kiosks and in‑house mail capability

Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert asked the County Commission on Tuesday to release and confirm a staffing-related budget allocation she said was included in last year’s approved budget, and to approve further spending for kiosks, technology and an in‑house mail operation to address heavy motor‑vehicle workloads.

Halbert told the commission her office’s monthly transaction volumes have roughly doubled since she took office and that her staff complement is understaffed. "If we can take care of our employees who have not been taken care of for many, many years," she said, "then I think we will be headed in the perfect direction" to address other needs. She said the office’s authorized complement is 109 positions, about 90 are currently filled, and 8–10 people are in onboarding.

The clerk’s presentation and her Motor Vehicle Registration (MVR) administrator, Benny Smith, summarized a prior FY25 personnel request for $1,100,000 to support a reclassification plan that would add managerial layers, two accountants and raise frontline wages. Smith said the request sought to exhaust roughly $400,000 in vacancy savings and add about $628,000 more to reach $1,100,000. He told commissioners the…