County Governments Save Time And Money With Document & Image Management

Most of us deal with county governments from time to time. After all, they handle such diverse documents as titles, warranty deeds, voter registration forms and marriage licenses. Obviously, the faster we can complete our business at the county offices, the happier most of us are.

Recognizing the need to upgrade its county offices, the State of Colorado two years ago installed imaging equipment in each of its counties. This equipment enabled county clerks to record and image legal documents in digitized format for storing them. However, for voter registration and motor vehicle liens, the counties were still dependent on a legacy system. Called CTOS (Convergent Technologies Operating System), the system had initially been installed in 1985 and was used to search databases for information contained on microfilm.

The Problems With Microfilm
Unfortunately, there were a number of problems associated with the microfilm-based system. The in-house microfilm cameras used were expensive, as were maintenance and supply costs. The process was tedious and slow. Finally, there was the issue of quality. Counties would sell microfilm images to title companies, which guarantee that titled property has no liens or claims against it. Unfortunately, the quality of the images was often poor, and the counties were barely breaking even.

A systems integrator and software developer in Denver, named LEDS (Law Enforcement Data Systems) developed expertise in database applications for voter registrations on the CTOS system. John Paulsen, president of LEDS, developed a better way to access their data. Since they already had the state-provided imaging system, Paulsen turned to a company on the other side of the state. He knew that Microfilm and Imaging of Durango, Inc. was a service bureau which specialized in imaging for county governments.

Teaming Up To Solve The Problems
LEDS and Microfilm & Imaging of Durango (MID) decided to work together. Paulsen integrated his database into PAPERFLOW software from Digitech Systems, Inc., a software vendor. He and MID's President, Leslie Lauth and Vice President, Jeanie Lauth then set up PAPERFLOW on the existing, State-provided system. The county clerks could then scan, index and retrieve any of the documents they wished, from marriage applications to voter registration forms to motor vehicle liens. Due to a unique modification to the software, developed by MID, they could even scan, index and retrieve the minutes of the county board of commissioners meetings. The general public can also use the integrated PAPERFLOW to search legal records via CD-ROMs. Leslie Lauth says the title companies that were unhappy with the old microfilm images are much more satisfied. As she says, "They can purchase the CD-ROMs from the county clerk and retrieve legal documents in the comfort of their own offices."

Solution Did Not Require Any New Hardware
MID's Leslie Lauth attributes the LEDS/MID success to several factors. First, the pricing for the software and integration was within most counties' budgets. Secondly, since the solution could be applied on existing hardware, no new hardware had to be bought.

Installation proved to be quite simple. A typical installation takes from one to three hours, depending upon equipment configuration. Training was also simple. Typically, Leslie Lauth spent one day at each county department which was affected by the change. For example, she would spend one day at the motor vehicle lien department, one day at the voter registration department, and so on.

Expanding The PAPERFLOW Solution To Other Counties
After the two companies joined forces and made their first installation, other counties began calling them to request the PAPERFLOW solution. To date, 10 counties in Colorado are using the solution. Leslie Lauth anticipates that, by the end of 1999, 20 more counties will have installed it.

Costs for film, developers and maintenance for the microfilm system are down significantly. The only supplies needed these days are CDs. Adams County, in the Denver metro area, estimates labor savings of two hours per day in its voter registration and motor vehicle lien offices.