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Tulare County assessor, clerk-recorder describe multi-year technology overhaul to shrink backlogs and speed services
Summary
Tulare County Assessor-Clerk-Recorder Tara Freitas and staff told the Board of Supervisors on Sept. 23 that four years of system upgrades and digitization reduced document backlogs, cut public wait times and set up a planned office move to Government Plaza.
Tulare County Assessor-Clerk-Recorder Tara Freitas told the Board of Supervisors on Sept. 23 that a program of software replacements, scanning and workflow automation has substantially reduced processing bottlenecks and shortened public wait times.
Freitas outlined projects including migration to the Megabyte property tax system, a Tyler Technologies recording platform for the clerk-recorder office, a machine‑learning data bridge called Just Appraised to transfer deeds into the assessor system, a county-funded scanning project that digitized millions of records, and expanded online business-property filing. "We've replaced all of our operating systems with modern, reliable technology," Freitas said.
The modernization work, funded in part with federal ARPA dollars and state trust funds, moved the assessor's office off a 40‑year‑old mainframe and into a paperless workflow that Freitas said eliminated long waits for birth, death and marriage certificates. Steve Wise, formerly the county's assessment services director, told the board the assessor's office now issues values for a wide range of property types and that the net tax roll grew by $3 billion this year, a 6 percent increase to nearly $53 billion.
Freitas said the county launched a Just Appraised bridge last spring that reduced the document backlog for deeds awaiting processing from 8,603 to about 1,584 documents, an 80 percent decline. She also said a scanning project integrated roughly 3 million documents into the Megabyte system and enabled a fully paperless workflow. The assessor's office reported 5,460 online business filings this year, up from 615 before the online filing upgrade.
The office has also built a GIS web map and mailed roughly 11,000 questionnaires to landowners to collect data related to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA); Freitas said that information supported about 3,000 land-valuation reductions. She told the board the work improved the county's ability to respond as market conditions change.
Local stakeholders provided written praise. Erica Pine, a CPA and assessment appeals board member, told the county that online filings reduced human error; attorney Jim Johnson praised staff willingness to review legal descriptions prior to recording; and Brett Taylor, CEO of the Tulare County Association of Realtors, commended the office's outreach and the Tyler recording migration.
Supervisors thanked staff and cited improved customer service. Supervisor Dennis Townsend noted the county's assessment roll size and the impact of agricultural valuation changes; Supervisor comments also referenced the upcoming relocation of the assessor, clerk‑recorder office to Government Plaza on Mooney Boulevard, which Freitas said is expected to be complete as early as next fall.
Freitas said the office continues to address remaining bottlenecks and will expand online tools and public communication materials, including new booklets and FAQs. "We have provided more online options," she said, "and finally, we have better public communication and transparency with your continued support."
