Clark County auditor’s race heated between incumbent, former employee


John Federer

Education: Graduate of The Ohio State University, B.S. Finance, Real Estate

Experience: Former bank president with more than 30 years of proven executive and business management experience. Managed more than 300 associates. Started a small-business consulting company after retiring from bank.

Top three priorities if elected:

My top 3 priorities are: Fair and accurate real estate values; expanding technology to save taxpayer dollars and also bring jobs to Clark County; I will continue to work daily for the taxpayer and insure best in class service. This will be accomplished by having the best and committed staff, being accountable to the promises made and continuing being transparent by public presentations, press releases, education, and civic involvement and more.

Source: Springfield News-Sun Voters Guide

Nikki Crawford

Education: Graduated Kenton Ridge High School. Attended Clark State Community College, taking courses in Accounting and Real Estate,

Experience 10 years management experience working in the Auditor's office, 20 years mass appraisal experience, 22 years management experience both in the public and private sector, 30 years working experience and incredible people skills

Top three priorities if elected:

1. Bring more services “in house” by hiring qualified local employees who are familiar with Clark County and the needs of the residents of Clark County. The average reappraisal in Clark County cost $1 million. I would like to bring this work in house at the Auditor’s office and hire local people with the knowledge and capabilities to ensure fair and accurate values throughout the county and city.

2. Treat all tax payers, employees of the Auditor’s office, elected officials and their respective staff, with professionalism and respect regardless of their status in the community. Work in cooperation with other county offices for better government for all taxpayers we serve. I would accomplish this by leading by example each and every day.

3. To make the Auditor’s office a truly transparent office working to ensure public trust and collaboration. True transparency at the Auditor’s office in all transactions and the operations of the office. There is no public record that is off limits.

Source: Springfield News-Sun Voters Guide

Get everything you need to know to vote on Nov. 4 with the our online voter’s guide at vote.springfieldnewssun.com.

The race for county auditor is a battle between an incumbent and a former employee who was forced out of the auditor’s office four months into his term.

Clark County Auditor John Federer took office in 2011 after defeating former Auditor George Sodders in a race in which Federer called the 2007 revaluation a “debacle” after a record 2,836 property value appeals were filed.

Federer, a Republican, blames the problems with the revaluation that was fraught with errors on his now opponent Nikki Crawford, a Democrat who served as director of appraisal services in 2007.

“The appraisal department was a catastrophe, how it was run. It was not run,” Federer said. “Our data was wrong and those people who were in charge of that and to quote the vendor who before I got here said: ‘They didn’t have the acumen to do the job.’”

Crawford was terminated July 8, 2011, after working for the department in management for 10 years.

She disputed that she was fired. Instead she said Federer revoked her unclassified status, which she called a complete surprise.

After Federer took office, Crawford said she never had a chance and was never approached to discuss concerns about her performance.

Federer wasn’t in the office at that time, she said, and doesn’t know what occurred during the 2007 revaluation.

“If he wants to point blame at me, that’s fine. It’s not true. But it amazes me that a man who was not there, doesn’t have the knowledge, has no problem pointing the finger,” Crawford said.

Federer: “There was a problem with the county”

Federer, a former bank president with more than 30 years of executive and business experience, is an Ohio State University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in real estate and finance.

The Columbus native said he came to Springfield to improve a bank, later rose to bank president and eventually led banks in 11 counties and oversaw more than 300 employees.

He retired after 34 years in banking and started Apollo Performance Consulting, a small business consulting firm.

“I was asked to run for auditor because there was a problem with the county,” Federer said.

His promises to voters were to provide fair and accurate real estate values, implement technology, and lead, restructure and manage the operation, and be at work every day.

“I have exceeded all … of those,” Federer said.

He has restructured the auditor’s office and developed a new organizational chart.

“With that came promotions, realignment of duties and recognition of what tasks were similar that should be in the same department but were scattered everywhere,” he said.

Employees were provided training for their jobs, he said, and cross training that would allow the office to do more with fewer employees.

Changes were also made with the GIS department, which Federer said restricted access to county data because they believed it was proprietary.

Now fire departments, schools and other groups such as the Clark County Emergency Management Agency have access to the county’s data. The information can be used to pull up aerial photographs and to craft security plans for example.

“We have implemented so much technology and time saving and life saving processes outside of this office that our GIS director made a presentation … in San Antonio, Texas, about how Clark County is doing it,” Federer said. “We have taken our data and configured it in such a way that the utilities department, community development, the sheriff, the prosecutor, the engineer, all the people who are out in the field, will be paperless.”

Online sales of dog tags has also been implemented and direct deposit is now mandatory for all county employees.

Federer also recently led a team of about 12 people from various county departments that selected a new $650,000 payroll system that will eliminate the need for county departments to bring employee time cards or vendor bills to the auditor’s office.

The transition from banking to auditor was not a difficult task, Federer said.

“Leading people, leading an organization and producing at high levels is no different (than the banking industry). It takes the same stuff,” he said.

But Federer says he is most proud of the changes made to the revaluation process.

The 2013 revaluation was conducted for about $900,000, about $1.2 million less than the cost of a revaluation done under his predecessor.

There were 981 appeals filed after the most recent revaluation.

“We corrected data. When you fix more in Clark County than Montgomery County, which is five times our size, that’s significant. When you have board of revision hearings that are a third of what was done under the watch of my opponent — because that was directly under her watch — that’s significant,” Federer said.

Clark County Republican Party Chairwoman Lynda Smith said Federer should be re-elected.

He has worked hard to bring new technology to the auditor’s office, Smith said, and has tried to make sure the revaluation process is accurate.

“He has done a super job,” she said.

Crawford: “Proud of the relationships that I developed”

When Crawford began working for the auditor’s office, she said appeals averaged about 100 to 200 for each revaluation, but increased with the economic and housing crisis.

“In 2007, (the appeals) really exploded. I think it’s the public. They’re more aware and money is tight,” she said.

Crawford is a graduate of Kenton Ridge High School and has attended Clark State Community College, where she has taken courses in accounting and real estate.

She has 10 years experience in management at the Clark County Auditor’s Office, 20 years mass appraisal experience and 22 years of management experiences in the public and private sector.

Crawford admits that the 2007 revaluation was a “mess,” but said one employee cannot be blamed.

The problems were caused by a number of factors, she said, including changes in management with the vendor the county hired to work on the revaluation.

“I don’t think they did the best possible job they could. They didn’t have strong management in there. I voiced my concerns to both the owner and to George. I think my concerns fell on deaf ears until it was too late,” Crawford said.

The 2007 revaluation took data from sales in 2005, 2006 and 2007. The housing market wasn’t bad in 2005 and 2006 and half of 2007, but then it crashed, she said.

“I’m not the one who signed the contracts. I’m not the one that submitted the final abstract that it was correct, but I have to live with the consequences that were there and I did … It wasn’t a good year,” Crawford said.

The issues with the revaluation were due in part to the housing market crash, Crawford said, and similar issues remain today.

“You’re never going to have a project that is 100 percent spot on,” Crawford said.

She also said problems with the revaluation were the result of a 2005 system conversion and some data wasn’t converted to the new system.

The auditor is the chief appraiser for the county, Crawford said, and an employee beneath that elected individual shouldn’t be solely blamed for the revaluation.

She said she worked to resolve issues with each taxpayer that filed an appeal.

“I’m proud of the relationships that I developed. I still have taxpayers that stop at my house to visit me. To me that says that we made a connection,” Crawford said.

If elected, Crawford wants to bring reappraisals in house instead of using a vendor.

“One, you would save money. Two, I think you would get a better product, and three, you would give local people jobs,” Crawford said.

Her plan calls for hiring four or five people at $12 per hour, as well as seasonal employees to work on revaluations instead of using a vendor with a residential data collector earning $55 an hour.

Hiring local people would improve accuracy, Crawford said.

“It might cost more starting out, but in the end you have a better product,” she said

Federer criticized hiring staff members for reappraisals, saying because they only occur every six years and would increase cost.

Crawford said voters should elect her because of her experience in the auditor’s office and good working relationship with county elected officials and the public.

“I’m trust worthy, I’m honest and I am transparent,” Crawford said. “I want to serve as the county auditor and I want to do the best job possible. Is it all going to be perfect? No. Am I going to lie to you? No.”

Clark County Democratic Party Chairman Dale Henry said Crawford is an excellent choice for auditor.

“She certainly has the experience, the type of drive and leadership capability to do the job to the extent that the public would expect from that position,” Crawford said.

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