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County officials outline records transfer, digitization and treasury modernization
Summary
Clerk and treasurer reported plans to transfer selected historical records to the Wisconsin Historical Society, pursue countywide records-management software and continue digitization; the Register of Deeds described customer-service and indexing improvements from 2025.
Richland County officials used the January meeting to summarize a series of administrative and records-management efforts, including plans to transfer selected archives to the Wisconsin Historical Society, digitize records and modernize treasury operations.
The clerk explained the county is short on storage space and will offer historically valuable records to the Wisconsin Historical Society while disposing of other items consistent with the county's March 2023 record retention schedule. "We have no room to store much more paper," the clerk said, and reported that the historical society will visit in late January to pick up material they wish to preserve. Election records were explicitly excluded from transfer and will be retained by the clerk per legal requirements.
Treasurer Ashley Mott described 2025 modernization steps: scanning historical documents to free space, creating online forms (including a change-of-address submission), moving to postcard tax reminders to reduce printing costs, improving investment laddering and planning cross-training for continuity in tax and property functions. Mott provided specific figures: $5,218.53 released to the general fund from long-unclaimed funds in 2025 and $6,006.82 released since 2015; the treasurer also noted an investment ladder with rates around 3–4.3 percent and a maturing two-year instrument near $1 million.
Register of Deeds Deb McCoy reported staffing changes, improved public access (open during lunch), new escrow interest revenues and new online services (vital records, fraud alerts). McCoy said office indexing and legal-description accuracy steps will reduce recording errors and cited new outreach and training for municipal partners.
Officials said they will inventory items transferred to the historical society and maintain a retention inventory for disposed items. The committee asked that staff provide lists of transferred items and continue to report progress as records are digitized and management systems are implemented.
Next steps: historical society pickup and transfer of selected records in late January, continued digitization, research and procurement of records-management software, and ongoing treasurer initiatives to finalize delinquent-property actions and cross-training.
