County Corner May 2019

Published by The Bee News

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Bullhead City | Economy | Kingman | Lake Havasu City | Politics | Press Release

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May 1, 2019

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Greetings from Kristi Blair, your Mohave County Recorder.

This month I want to share some changes that have occurred or may be coming in the near future:

Last year’s legislature, in conjunction with the land title industry, implemented a standardized fee for recording documents. Beginning July 1, all recorded documents will be a flat fee of $30.00. Fee structures can oftentimes become confusing depending upon the transaction and this will simplify the process.

This fee change was passed in last year’s legislative session but requested not to be

This month I would like to take the opportunity to address the upcoming election. I want to thank all of our citizens who have already exercised their right to vote! Early Voting was available until November 2nd and we had a record number of voters take advantage of this option. Many of you have already voted your ballot by mail as well.

I would like to address some important information about Early Voting and Ballot by Mail. Hopefully this will be beneficial for voters that have already voted.

Please feel free to contact our office (928) 753-0701 or visit our website at www.MohaveCounty.us, select Government/Recorder/Recording Fees for additional information.

Please remember that we now have combined offices with the Assessor in Bullhead City and Lake Havasu City to assist you with recordings.

We are very busy with the implementation of a new statewide voter registration system. Testing has been ongoing and training will begin in June for staff. We are hoping for a successful transition in preparation for the 2020 election cycle.

There were approximately 75 bills this legislative session regarding elections and voter registration. Several are worth mentioning on their own of changes that have occurred or bills of particular interest:

• SB1090, was recently signed by the Governor and was not supported by any of the County Recorders, the County Supervisors Association, the Arizona Association of Counties or the Secretary of State’s Office. It is in regards to emergency voting and additional requirements that need to be met by voters. The responsibility for emergency voting has also been placed under the authority of the Board of Supervisorsrather than the County Recorders.

• SB1072 also signed by the Governor, now requires identification at an early voting site in order to receive an early ballot. Identification was previously a practice but not a requirement when voting at an early voting site because your signature was subsequently verified before the ballot was accepted.

• SB1054 also signed by the Governor, allows voters whose signatures were inconsistent with their signature on file to be allowed five business days to correct the discrepancy. During the General Election of 2018, this became an issue as most of the counties determined this time to be 7:00 p.m. on Election Night while several counties allowed up to five days after the election for voters to verify signature discrepancies. This ensures all 15 counties are following the same requirements for signature discrepancies.