CLERK OF COUNCIL Books of laws on disks

The electronic effort has cut paper costs, the city clerks note.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- The city's clerk of council office is looking to clear out some clutter and move into the technology age.
Clerk Darla K. Neugebauer and Deputy Clerk Brenda E. Smith are scanning all legislation into their computers so it may be e-mailed to people who want it. The documents also are saved on computer disks.
"Department heads and other people who want it can receive it in a more timely manner, and then they can just print out the part of it that they want," Neugebauer said.
"And it saves money because we won't be using as much paper," Smith added.
Neugebauer ordered paper for the office late last year, and with less printing and copying because of the electronic method, they still have some left.
"We as a city are way behind other cities and even some little villages," the clerk said. "This will put us equal or maybe even ahead of them."
Goal for scanning
Eventually, they want to scan all 87 ordinance books and 20 resolution books piled up in their office into the computer. At 200 pages each, Smith estimates 10 books will fit on one disk.
But scanning could take several years to complete.
Older legislation, dating back to the 1800s, will have to be copied before it's scanned to avoid damaging the paper.
The change also preserves the city's laws.
"Right now, if there's a fire, all of the legislation would be gone," Neugebauer said.
There are backup copies in the law department, but those copies are of draft legislation. These do not include ordinance and resolution numbers and signatures, she said.
When complete, the disks will likely be stored in a fire-safe area of the municipal justice building, where the clerk of council's office is located.
"The office has to enter the 21st century, and I can't think of two people more up on their technology than Brenda and Darla," Council President Robert A. Marchese said.
He envisions a city without so much reliance on paper, where people conduct most of their business via a personal computer.
"There's been too much paper for too long in too many offices," Marchese said.
The clerk of council office's change shows progress, he said.
"I'm excited about it," the council president said.
denise_dick@vindy.com