OFFICES

COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
A board of County Commissioners is the representatives or agent of an entity termed a county. A creature of statute, the board, consisting of elected officials, serves as the chief administrative body of the county, responsible for such matters as creating a budget and assessing taxes. It is also empowered to sit as judicial court in limited circumstances, serving as a board of appeal of questions concerning the amount of property taxes or as a damage board for claims made against the county.

The County Commissioner districts are divided into the following three districts:

The statutes governing the actions of the county commissioners are nearly all enumerated in Title 30-A of the Maine Revised Statutes Annotated, although scattered references are made to county commissioner throughout the revised statutes.

The office of County Commissioner is solely a creature of the State Legislature, and its powers are set forth in the Maine Revised Statutes Annotated (30-A M.R.S.A.).

It is through statute then, that the office of the County Commissioner is born and takes shape. Generally speaking, the County Commissioners consisting of three elected officials regulate the administrative affairs of the county. Their duties consist of the creation and administration of the budget, the maintenance and control of county property and personnel, the collections of rents and profits, and the performance of any other functions which concern the running of county affairs.

At times, the County Commission is also called upon to act in a judicial capacity, serving as a damage board for assessing amounts for property taken by the county, or in some instances the State or Federal government, and as a board of appeal for questions concerning the amount of property taxes. However, the board is at most a "quasi-judicial" body, empowered to act judicially in limited circumstances only. This is an important distinction in a circumstance when a decision of the County Commissioner is, pursuant to statute, appealed to the Superior Court.

Normally a Court cannot appeal from its own decision, but the Superior Court, distinguished the board of County Commissioners as a Court acting in a limited capacity from a Court of Law.

Once the County Commission has rendered a decision, and an appeal has been lodged, the board reverts to its former status as an administrative agent, and is free to defend its position on appeal. This decision is a necessarily correct one, for were it otherwise, the county's interest would not be properly protected if appealed.

In November, 2004, voters of the county approved a county charter. By the terms of that charter there is no longer a "Board of County Commissioners" - it is now called the "Knox County Commission". The charter made provision for the county to hire a county administrator. The new county administrator, Andrew L. Hart, will begin his duties in Mayl, 2008. The administrative office staff includes the administrator, an executive assistant and a administrative assistant.

DISTRICT ATTORNEY
The District Attorney's office employs six county employees. The county provides two secretaries, a receptionist, two victim/witness advocates, and a prosecutorial assistant to assist in the operations of the District Attorney's office.

The District Attorney and his assistants are State employees. The District Attorney's duties include drawing indictments, hearing complaints before the grand jury and preparation and trial of criminal cases. The District Attorney or his assistants may also act as counsel for the State in the trial of complaints before Judges of the District Court and Justices of the Superior Court and in the prosecution of appeals before the Supreme Judicial Court.

REGISTRY OF DEEDS
The Registry of Deeds is the county office in which all transactions concerning land are recorded. The office records approximately 15,000 documents each year. Deeds, mortgages, liens, leases, as well as court documents concerning land can be found among the records in the Registry. Many of the old records found in the Registry are handwritten. Today all documents are microfilmed and the original document can be returned to the owner. In 1984 a computer for indexing was installed to enable the records to be filed more accurately and quickly. In December, 2004 some of the Registry's records were posted on-line.

Lisa Simmons is the fourteenth Registrar of Deeds. The office staff includes a deputy registrar and two full-time clerks. Beginning January, 2007, the position of Register will be appointed by the county administrator in accordance with the charter. Lisa Simmons was appointed Registrar of Deeds and confirmed by the Knox County Commission.

FINANCE OFFICE
In accordance with the Knox County Charter, the county treasurer's position became an appointed position beginining January 1, 2007. Kathy Robinson was appointed Finance Director/Treasurer by the county administrator and confirmed by the Knox County Commission. The finance office staff includes a deputy treasurer, and a bookkeeper.

PROBATE COURT
The Registrar of Probate records wills, guardianships, and adoptions, to name a few duties. Probate Court is held at least once a month. In recent years, the Probate office staff has begun to microfilm many of the old records for security purposes. Records date back to 1860.

Long time deputy registrar Elaine D. Hallett was elected in 1998 and began her first term as registrar in January 1999. A deputy registrar and a part-time clerk comprise the staff in the office. The presiding Judge of Probate is Carol R. Emery.

SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENTS
The Sheriff's departments consist of the Patrol, Detective, and Corrections Divisions. Presently the county has round the clock coverage provided by the Sheriff's deputy patrol. The various divisions of the sheriff's department often assist other local agencies. The county commissioners contract with the islands of Vinalhaven and North Haven to provide law enforcement protection to the residents of the islands. Sheriff Donna Dennison and Chief Deputy Ernest McIntosh took office January 1, 2007.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY
The office of Emergency Management, previously known as the office of Civil Defense and later as the office of Civil Preparedness, was established in 1949. This office is responsible for assisting the public in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. Of particular concern in today's world is that of hazardous materials incidents. It is also responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the county All Hazard Contingency Plan and assists towns in their planning and training efforts.

Each town within the county has a director. Many attend the planning and training sessions provided by the county office, to prepare for emergencies. Many of these local directors are well-trained firefighters. The county presently employs Ray O. Sisk as the director and a clerk to assist with the daily operations of the EMA office.

EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
The Knox Regional Communications Center was created to provide a consolidated public safety answering point for 9-1-1 emergency calls within Knox County. After negotiations at both the State and Local level that had spanned three decades, the Knox R.C.C. finally realized the ultimate goal on April 11, 2001 when the new 9-1-1 Enhanced system for Knox County was activated.

The Center is staffed with a director, two supervisors, and nine dispatchers and serves the entire county and Lincolnville (Waldo County).

KNOX COUNTY REGIONAL AIRPORT
One aspect of our county government which is known to only one other county in the State of Maine is the county airport which is located in Owls Head. The City of Rockland originally acquired the airport sometime after World War II from the federal government. In 1968, the county was asked to assume responsibility of the airport. The airport makes use of the Federal and State Airport Aid Programs which are funded entirely by airport users who pay taxes into a trust fund from ticket sales, fuel and various sales and excise taxes. The county's small local five percent match on airport projects is quickly returned by the benefits realized in the area from the construction monies pumped into the local economy.

The county employees an airport manager, a maintenance supervisor, and a maintenance person, who are responsible for maintaining the airport properties. An administrative assistant works 20 hours a week assisting the airport manager in with billing and other clerical tasks.

BUSINESS HOURS
Most county offices are open to the public during normal business hours between 8:00 am. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

In summary, Knox County has made many changes over the years. Undoubtedly, there will be more changes in our future.

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