Oakland County Clerk announces election bid

Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds Bill Bullard Jr. announced yesterday that he will seek election to the office he has held since his selection by the judges of the Oakland County Circuit Court in January 2011. Bullard was appointed to fill the vacancy left in the county-wide office when then-Clerk Ruth Johnson was election Michigan Secretary of State. Just three months after his swearing in as County Clerk, Bullard became the first Oakland County clerk to visit all 61 of the county's city, township and village clerks and meet with them and their staffs in order to better serve and coordinate services to Oakland County residents. Bullard has expanded the County Clerk's Mobile Office service from visiting libraries and municipal offices each month to local outdoor festivals and farmers' markets. Last month, he began a cooperative effort with the Secretary of State to provide a travelling One Stop Shop for Clerk/Secretary of State services in SOS branches. Bullard's "Online not In Line" campaign has been reaching out to residents to let them know that many of the things they come to the Clerk/Register's office to do, can be done at home on their computer. In April 2011, Bullard testified before a House Committee in Lansing on the fraudulent practice of "robo-signing" after discovering that large banks and financial institutions were using it to shortcut the foreclosure process in Oakland and other Michigan counties. This led to several reforms being passed a the state level. In October, 2011, when the Pontiac Emergency Manager fired the Pontiac Clerk, Bullard stepped up immediately to ensure that birth and death records for the city of Pontiac would be made available without interruption in service to families and others who need them. "Open Oakland, the Clerk's Transparency Project" made County Commission meeting minutes available online to the public for the first time. Other county business has also been added to the database. This keeps elected officials more accountable than ever. In late 2011, Bullard brought "Deeds Express" online. This service scans important real estate documents immediately so they do not have to be left at the office and mailed back to the owners. This saves postage costs to the taxpayer, prevents mortgage funding scams by having documents immediately searchable online, and saves inconvenience to the documents' holders. Bullard also approved the "Property Fraud Alert" system by which property owners can sign up to be notified by email immediately of any recordings taken in regards to their property. Bullard opened an "E-Services Center" for the public. It provides workspace and staff assistance for attorneys--and especially those filing court cases without an attorney--for the "eFiling" system for Circuit Court. The E-Services Center also provides space for people to use the Court Explorer system free of charge, and to do genealogy searches. In November of 2011, the election in the city of Pontiac was put in jeopardy by employees angered by the firing of the city clerk. Many staged a walkout on election day, some gave warning. Bullard authorized his Elections Division in advance to help provide the legally necessary poll workers; and no voters were denied--or even delayed--a chance to vote. Bullard supported Election Consolidation and worked with local districts so that every school district in Oakland County now has its elections in November of even years when more people participate. Published: Tue, Apr 10, 2012

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