Letter from Martin Tillapaugh

Basile the Only One Qualified

I am a native of Otsego County and have been a businessman and an attorney in this and the surrounding counties for over 46 years. I have, by my count, used nearly half of the 62 County Clerk’s Offices which exist in this state. While the tenor of every clerk’s office differs, I can without hesitation state that the Otsego County Clerk’s Office is, thanks in large part to its staff, one of the easiest to work in.

I have rarely felt the need to publicly state my reasons for supporting a particular candidate in an election, and I apologize for the length of this letter, but I sincerely believe that the importance of electing the best candidate for the position of Otsego County Clerk requires me to detail my thoughts.

In each county, the County Clerk’s Office is the depository for its residents’ critical and important governmental records. The staff is responsible for the accurate indexing, filing, and secure maintenance and retrieval of them. Some of those records are the deeds to our homes and real property, mortgages (and satisfactions thereof), pertinent estate proceedings, easements, contracts, leases, assignments, powers of attorney (and revocations thereof), rights-of-way, maps, tax liens, judgments, our various business records, our public and confidential court files and records, military records, and county government records. The office is also charged with overseeing the operation of the state’s local DMV office, including the titling, transfer and registration of our vehicles, and the issuance of our driver’s licenses and maintenance of our driving records. In addition, the staff is responsible for collecting and recording the numerous state-mandated recording and filing fees and taxes (mortgage, transfer, sales) and the preparation of the required accounting documents required to forward the state’s share of each to the appropriate state office each day.

In a small county such as ours, the position of county clerk is a “working position,” not a “management position.” It is not, and should not be, a political position, but rather a position that is occupied by an individual who possesses the requisite service skills and knowledge. Everyone who works in the office must contribute to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the office. For all that it does, the office has just nine employees (three in the Clerk’s Office and six in the DMV office) who are overseen by the county clerk and deputy clerk. It is an “all-hands-on-deck” office—the clerk and deputy are as likely to assist you as anyone. The county clerk’s position requires a detailed and intimate knowledge of the workings of the offices. It is the responsibility of the clerk and deputy clerk to ensure that everything is promptly and accurately indexed and filed. The complex operation of the office is not something that can quickly be learned on the job, nor should it be trusted to someone who has virtually no experience in, or knowledge of, its operation.

The only person running for the office of Otsego County Clerk who is qualified, experienced and ready to assume the role is Jennifer Basile. Jennifer is a licensed, certified, New York State paralegal. She understands the legal significance and importance of every aspect of the office. She has worked in the office for over 14 years. Her knowledge of the processes and procedures of the office and her leadership skills were recognized by our current County Clerk, Kathy Sinnott Gardner, when she appointed her as the deputy county clerk eight years ago. Jennifer Basile has earned our trust and deserves our support as she has proven her ability.

One final point. I recognize the impact that the closure of the DMV office in Oneonta had on the residents in and around Oneonta but, the reduced funding during COVID, for which she has been maligned, was a state decision not a local one. To Jennifer’s credit, and as the “public servant” that she has always been, she has been working quietly but diligently for well over a year to procure funding for a mobile DMV and a location in Oneonta. I understand that she has been successful and intends to include the re-establishment of DMV services to the Oneonta area in her budget proposal.

If you don’t know me, I invite each of you to ask your attorney, a staff member in the clerk’s offices, or anyone familiar with all that the clerk’s office does, if I am correct. I am certain that most, if not all, of those who are familiar with the workings of the office will agree that Jennifer Basile possesses the attributes, knowledge, management and customer service skills necessary to ensure the continued smooth operation of the Otsego County Clerk’s Office.

Please join me on November 7 and vote for Jennifer Basile as our next Otsego County clerk.

Martin H. Tillapaugh, Esq.
Cooperstown