Platform

OPEN GOVERNMENT | ACCESSIBLE GOVERNMENT| RESPONSIVE GOVERNMENT

Open Government

As your County Clerk, Keith Taylor will bring the County Clerk's office into the 21st Century. Keith Taylor believes it is time to move towards open government in Coles County, by ensuring that all business related to the County Board is accessible, especially on the Internet, to all citizens in a timely manner. This will include all meeting agendas, minutes related to the board at large, and minutes from all committees.

Such information will be available via podcasts, videocasts, downloadable documents, and good old-fashioned hard copy.

Keith Taylor will use his background in technology and design county websites that are useful, interactive, and up-to-date, similar to websites operating for Champaign County and Cook County Clerks' offices. This will be done via little to no costs, through freeware. Keith Taylor believes the County Clerk's office should work efficiently for citizens who have business with the clerk's office and will ensure there are electronic versions of all county forms available, as well as all non-sensitive records available back to 1830. Furthermore, the budget for all offices will be available online, downloadable and in hard copy for all citizens to view how their tax dollars are being spent.

It's your county, your government, and once Keith Taylor is elected, you will be aware of how it's working for you. Coles County will be the model for open local government Illinois.

Accessible Government

As the lead official in local elections, Keith Taylor will provide real leadership to increase polling locations, ensure all eligible voters, including soldiers and senior citizens, have the opportunity to participate with absentee and early voting; and work to inform all citizens of issues related to voting.

Keith Taylor believes voter registration is important in a vibrant democracy and will work to register over 500 new voters every year. Keith Taylor will make it easier to update voter registration information for all residents. That means hands-on assistance or automated services via the web. Residents are working harder and longer, and so must our officials to ensure ease of access. Keith Taylor will work with local businesses and community groups to expand ease of access to voter registration by providing voter registration cards at advertised locations and work to create voter registration kiosks.

Keith Taylor believes that citizens should have access to voting and will work to reinstate the 17 polling places lost under Betty Coffrin, because access is vital to democracy. With Keith Taylor as your County Clerk, he will make Coles County government accessibility a model of citizen democracy.

Responsive Government

Keith Taylor will ensure that all tax levies and property tax information is collected, calculated and disseminated on time. Keith Taylor will hold town halls to explain the process of property tax assessment, levying, and collection.

Keith Taylor will ensure that all minutes of all meetings will be accurate and backed up via written, video, and audio recordings, so the general public may witness every County meeting at their convenience and hold their officials accountable.

Keith Taylor will post all services available in the Clerk's office and the County government in general on the County Clerk's website. The cost of all services will be posted, alongside an explanation for the cost or any future increase.

The budget will be posted as soon as it's available on the web or in hard copy format.

Remember, it's your county, your government! Your officials are elected to serve you, the voter, which is what Keith Taylor will do.