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Clerk of Courts to transfer $2 million to Trumbull County general fund; commissioners approve memorandum
Summary
The board approved an MOU with the Clerk of Courts to transfer $2,000,000 from the Certificate of Title Administration Fund to the county general fund, a move praised by several commissioners and prompting one abstention over document-signing and process concerns.
On Dec. 11 the Trumbull County Board of Commissioners approved a memorandum of understanding with the Trumbull County Clerk of Courts to transfer $2,000,000 from the Certificate of Title Administration Fund to the county general fund.
The MOU, presented under Item 42, states the transfer is consistent with Ohio Revised Code 325.33 and that $2,000,000 will be moved to the general fund to be used for county purposes as determined by the board. Speaker 3 (identified in the meeting as praising the clerk’s fiscal stewardship) described the transfer as "a $2,000,000 gift" to taxpayers and credited the clerk for maintaining a prudent reserve over many years.
During discussion Speaker 6 raised concerns about signature blocks attached to the circulated agreement and objected to the human resources director appearing as having signed a document that, in Speaker 6’s view, should not be executed on behalf of the board. Speaker 2 noted that signatures matter only after the board votes to approve the agreement. Citing those procedural concerns, Miss Frenchko abstained from the recorded vote.
The motion to approve the MOU passed with commissioners Cantalamasa and Malloy voting yes and Frenchko abstaining. The board did not specify particular line-item uses in the meeting record; Speaker 3 said the funds will be used broadly for county needs including major facilities and emergency services. The agreement as presented terminates Dec. 31, 2024 in the text and records the planned transfer subject to execution following the vote.
Next steps include executing the MOU after the vote and moving the funds through the auditor’s office to the general fund, with standard accounting and reporting as required by Ohio law.
