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Recorder of Deeds proposes $2 per‑page increase to recording fees; council probes technology fund use
Summary
Recorder of Deeds Mike Kozakowski proposed raising recording fees from $13 to $15 per page to generate an estimated $700,000 in revenue for FY27, and councilmembers debated whether technology fund reserves might be used to offset operating pressures elsewhere.
Mike Kozakowski, Recorder of Deeds, told the finance committee on May 7 that his office is projecting increased revenue driven by the real estate market and proposed a per‑page recording fee increase from $13 to $15 to generate an estimated $700,000 for the county.
Kozakowski outlined office accomplishments — a community association portal, an 'alert me' system with more than 6,186 subscribers and transitioning recordation services to cloud platforms — and said the FY27 requested budget reflects a modest net decrease driven by operating adjustments and merit increases. He told council the fee increase is ‘‘a conservative number’’ and that actual receipts may exceed the projection.
Council members queried the scale of the increase and its distributional effects. Councilman Koneko asked whether the fee could be raised more (for example to $17 per page) to help backfill cuts elsewhere; Kozakowski's chief deputy, Sheree Cole, responded that the office had benchmarked comparable counties in neighboring states and was reluctant to ‘‘out‑price’’ consumers, noting many mortgage filings generate dozens of pages and consumers ultimately bear recording costs.
Members also examined the Recorder of Deeds technology fund. Kozakowski said the office maintains two technology accounts and reported current balances (approximately $311,039.42 in the ROD account and $275,111.95 in the New Castle County account) and noted that the combined balance available across accounts is a little over $600,000. Chief Financial Officer Dave Del Grande cautioned that prescribed processes exist for using technology funds and that many projects across county departments rely on that funding; he warned that spending reserves to cover operating shortfalls could undercut planned modernization projects.
Kozakowski said the ROD will continue to apply grants and pursue non‑operating revenue (he cited HUD and other revenues) and closed by offering to provide council further details about fee impacts and technology fund requests. The council did not vote on the fee increase at the hearing; any change in recording fees would require legislation and council action.
