Clerk Shanae Clemons Brown requests large imaging project and expanded staff to protect records

Shanae Q. Clemons Brown, Clerk of Superior and Magistrate Court, told commissioners the clerk’s office is responsible for custody of judicial and real‑estate records and requested funding to digitize records and expand staffing.

Clemons Brown described an imaging project she said totals $1,672,012.74 and said she was requesting phase‑1 funding for FY2027 (the presentation listed a phase‑1 figure that was provided verbatim in the transcript). She said phase 1 would focus on criminal records from 2014 through 2023 and framed the project as a safeguard against loss from fire or other disasters after referencing a courthouse fire in another county.

On staffing, Clemons Brown requested $381,486 for additional salaries including five entry‑level deputy court clerk positions and one administrative manager, arguing that previous modest additions improved productivity and that securing the remaining positions would help the office address service complaints and workloads across five divisions and 39 employees.

She also asked for training and travel ($20,816 requested; finance recommended $10,000), repair and maintenance funding (she requested $6,000 and noted time clocks average about $1,400 per visit), and advertising funds to meet new statutory requirements tied to the Board of Ethics and Board of Equalization (she described a recommended $9,240 and requested an additional $2,310 for equalization advertising). Clemons Brown said uniform items for staff were requested but she proposed a compromise limited to cardigans and a polo at smaller costs.

Clemons Brown told commissioners the clerk’s offices are on the front lines interacting with the public daily and urged funding to avoid legal exposure and to preserve access to records. Commissioners did not vote on the request at the session.