It was all smiles for Carmen Finley. And rightfully so.
The county clerk had nothing but good news for the Trigg County Fiscal Court during Monday night’s meeting, in which she was able to turn over a treasury deposit worth $276,586.87 in excess fees.
This was the result of another record in county receipts, as Finley noted her office took in $5,806,011.91 worth of payments, and dispersed $5,529,425.04 back to appropriate avenues.
Last year’s record efforts, she said, were 7% more than 2021’s receipts — further confirming a little growth, additional commerce, and a slight increase in fees for data recording.
What Finley asked for in return, however, could prove pivotal in Trigg County’s continued election success.
Harp Enterprises and Election Services, one of two required vendors in Kentucky, is upping its monthly fee from $2,041 to $2,184.08 — and increase north of $140.
Magistrates unanimously agreed to a 48-month renewal with Harp.
Also, Finley noted that during Trigg County’s last election — the November General — one ADA-compliant machine in Cerulean didn’t work. And there was no backup machine, because Finley said she thought they were covered.
She doesn’t want to be uncovered again, and asked the fiscal court to authorize the purchase of a $4,720 machine — which would bring the county’s total to eight.
Magistrates unanimously agreed to the purchase, also from Harp.
Furthermore, with critical primary and general elections on the horizon this year, particularly for governor, Finley said it was also time to renew 21 e-poll books through supplier Tenex — eventually to be reimbursed by the state at $1,700 per e-poll book.
Finley called the e-poll books “vital” to the voting process.
In the future, Finley added that her office would like to eventually get to the point of “print-on-demand” balloting someday, and it’s something her station continues to explore.