Department Spotlight- TAC
Posted by: Marsha Bills
Trust and Accounting Division Is Focused On
Programs to Increase Revenues for District Clerk
Trust and Accounting Manager Leonard Blackwell and his team have been particularly busy in the past month implementing a new web-based Interactive Voice Response (IVR) project called Global Connect, which will have a great impact on the operations of Trust and Accounting, and the Civil/Family and Criminal Divisions.
Global Connect’s main purpose is to help the District Clerk’s Office collect revenue and assist customers by providing information about court costs and fees that due, court dates, and other information, which will in turn reduce the number of calls each division currently receives. This reduction in time-consuming communication will allow each division to focus more time on collecting outstanding costs, fees, and fines.
With the help of the Collection Supervisor Carla Barclay and her employees, County IT and OSI/NCO, which is the County’s new collection vendor, the section is in the process of increasing efforts to collect outstanding court costs and fees owed to Dallas County. To support that effort, a new automated collection platform is also being reviewed.
Also, the section is testing its new 1099 financial software that will allow the section to generate 1099s, which are Interest Income forms sent to customers at the end of the year for invested accounts with TEXPOOL. This testing is in anticipation of September 1, 2009 when a new law will be enacted, enabling the Trust Section to move funds from the court registry where they currently earn no interest to interest-bearing accounts.
The team is also in the process of updating its web page to include more forms, an improved online customer survey for each section, and advice to help customers get information about submitting cost bills, wiring funds to, and other information to support customer service and section operations.