... one of my fellow Auditor's can prove otherwise. I think Linn County's Elections Department may be the first in the state to be SEAT certified (see press release below). And if that claim doesn't hold up, we should be the Department with the most SEAT certified graduates - five (5). In any case, I'm proud of this team: Sue, Tim, Sarah, and Carolyn. And proud to be part of this team! --Joel @ 5:10pm
LINN ELECTIONS DEPARTMENT COMPLETES TEAM GOAL
CEDAR RAPIDS—All Linn County election staff members are now certified Iowa State Election Administrators. On January 18, election staff members Sarah Little, Carolyn Schlotter and Tim Box along with Auditor & Commissioner of Elections Joel Miller, completed SEAT (Iowa State Election Administrators Training) certification sponsored by the Iowa State Association of Counties, the Iowa Secretary of State's Office, and the State & Local Government Programs of Iowa State University . This completes the goal of having the entire department certified. Sue Wold, Deputy Auditor in charge of Elections, received her certification in 2003.
Course curriculum topics ranged from registering voters to certifying election results as well as media and ethical issues. Courses were held in Johnston, Iowa.
The first SEAT (Iowa State Election Administrators Training) session was held in August 2002. The goals of SEAT are to:
- Enhance the trust of Iowans in the state electoral process by certifying the professional competence of Iowa's election administrators.
- Provide a forum in which Iowa election administrators can share and learn from their counterparts about best practices in the administration of elections.
- Provide an educational curriculum that will increase the knowledge of election administrators about laws and rules affecting the administration of elections in Iowa.
- Provide an educational curriculum that will build the skills of election administrators to effectively engage the voting public and media in the pursuit of conducting well-run elections.
The Linn County Elections Department is now more prepared than ever to effectively handle the 2008 election year and beyond.
Department Description
The Linn County Auditor & Commissioner of Elections is responsible for administering all elections held within the county. On average, 10 elections per year are held in Linn County. These elections may be special elections, school elections, municipal elections, or primary and general elections. Linn County is comprised of 18 cities, 14 school districts, and 139,000 registered voters.
Joel Miller became Linn County’s Auditor & Commissioner of Elections on February 20, 2007. His current term of office expires December 31, 2008.
The Auditor’s Office is comprised of almost 60 employees assigned to several teams. Election Services is described above. Accounts Payable processes 1,200 invoices per week and manages a database of 4,000+ vendors. Every other week, Payroll processes the wages for 1,100+ employees. GIS/Mapping manages a geographical information database containing 95,000+ parcels. Real Estate processes about 800 real estate transfers per month. The Property Tax team reviews the annual budgets of 56 local government entities and consolidates the tax rates of 260 taxing districts. The Facilities department provides custodial and maintenance support for 12 buildings containing 475,069 square feet of floor space. ###