Friday, October 28, 2016
BOARDMAN
Steven Carter, the Republican challenger to Democratic incumbent Mahoning County Recorder Noralynn Palermo, has criticized Palermo for her failure to meet the yearly continuing education requirement for county recorders, which is specified by Ohio law.
“It is disturbing that the current elected recorder, especially one who touts her experience, would be negligent in complying with the requirements of law,” Carter said.
Carter called a Thursday news conference at county Republican Party headquarters to criticize Palermo on this issue.
In 2011, Ohio law was revised to require all county recorders to complete eight hours of continuing education annually concerning current laws and regulations, threats to the integrity of the data entrusted to them and how to combat those threats.
Palermo acknowledged that she hasn’t fulfilled the continuing education requirements, but said failure to do so doesn’t disqualify her from being a county recorder.
She said she regularly attends quarterly Northeast Ohio Recorders’ Association meetings that take place within Northeast Ohio and has attended public records management training at Youngstown State University.
However, Palermo said she can’t leave her office, which is staffed by five people, for three-day conventions, usually in Columbus, where the eight hours of continuing education is offered.
“I have a small-staffed office. It is difficult to miss work,” she said. “I am a hands-on, working recorder” who is in the office full-time, she said.
“My opponent has been trying to create issues in a well-run office, where issues don’t exist,” Palermo said of Carter.
“My opponent is trying to jump-start his campaign, and this is a spark,” she added. “This is all politics.”