December 13, 2017 - I would like to announce my candidacy for re-election to the office of Shelby County Treasurer on the Republican ballot in the March Primary.
I was elected to office in January of 2015. As I quickly saw the needs of the office of Treasurer, I began to make changes that have affected the county as a whole. I am very proud of the accomplishments that I have made in the short three years I have been in office. Some of those changes have been to explore excessive costs for services being provided to the county and then controlling those costs and expenditures. I have listed some of my accomplishments below and hope you see I am genuinely concerned with making sure your tax dollars are spent wisely.
I am diligent to maintain the appropriate number of annual training hours for my certification of County Investment Officer and Treasurer.
Accomplishments Since 1/1/15
• Re-negotiated At&t phone line service and long distance. Changed all At&t lines to government rates and switched long distance to Tex-an rates. Savings of $75,300.00 annually (over my 4 year term amounts to $301,000.00 in savings to the county)
• Discovered error in fee reporting and overpayment from 2011-2014 of $9,885.00. Was able to recoupe $2,646.00 and created spreadsheet to prevent any future overpayments.
• Invested cash from money market account earning .25% interest to (4) staggered 12 month CDs earning .70%, increasing investment earnings on $1.7m dollars from $4,300 per year in interest to $12,300 per year in interest.
• Attended necessary training and education courses as the certified investment officer for the county.
• Wrote new investment policy for the county to be in compliance with the public funds investment act (pifa) which was approved by the Commissioners Court.
• Researched and put together information with intelligent computer concepts to present proposal for At&t fiber optic cable to be installed in the courthouse to replace slower U-Verse and DSL lines at an additional cost savings to the county.
• Assisted in getting all JPs computerized and submitting same format reports with correct fee distributions. I continue to work closely with each JP to help ensure any new fees are collected and reported.
• Streamlined reports for Commissioners Court, cutting the Commissioners Court reports from approximately 200 sheets of paper each court to 6-8 sheets. Created more informative Treasurer’s report in an easier to read format to give more pertinent information necessary for budget decisions. This also dramatically cut the expense for copy paper and supplies.
I am dedicated to making and keeping the office of Shelby County Treasurer an office of integrity and pride to the citizens of Shelby County.
Ann Blackwell
Shelby County Treasurer
