State-funded Clerk's Office seeks County dollars for staffing

The County's population and the need for deputy court clerks have grown in tandem.

 

County Commissioners heard a request from Clerk of Court Michelle Ball for $1 million to hire 11 deputy clerks.

In making that request on Jan. 5, Ball acknowledged that funding deputy clerks is a state responsibility. But she said North Carolina has had more pressing spending needs in recent years.

“In the past five years, we have seen some rather extraordinary times,” Ball told Commissioners. “We’ve experienced COVID. We’ve had hurricane damage at both the coast and, rather unexpectedly, in our mountains.”

Complicating matters is the General Assembly’s inability to pass a state budget, a political impasse that leaves funding for Ball’s office at its 2024-25 level.

“Probably like you, I’m at a loss as to why we don’t have a state budget yet,” she said.

But Ball conceded that a new state budget would be no guarantee of the funding her office needs. “I fear if the budget were to pass next week, there would still not be any positions to respond to the explosive growth that Johnston County has experienced,” she said.

Ball said filings in her office had “gone up exponentially,” especially evictions and criminal traffic cases.

“To maintain the level of service that Johnstonians are accustomed to in my office, I’m requesting funding for these positions,” she said.

Ball called the 11 positions “absolutely necessary for the provision of timely justice and public safety in Johnston County.”

She noted that a clerk must be in every session of court. And in criminal court, “people don’t get released from jail until my office prepares orders and sends them to judges for signature,” Ball said.

Johnston’s state lawmakers are on her side, Ball said. But “in general, I think, at the legislature, it’s not been a priority,” she said of funding for deputy clerks.

“That’s unfortunate, because this affects the citizens on a day-to-day basis,” Commissioner Bill Stovall said, adding, “I’m supportive of trying to help you out here because when customer service is impacted by lack of resources, it’s a reflection on government as a whole.”

Still, Stovall cautioned against any open-ended County funding of deputy clerks. “I think having a limit in there is appropriate to ensure that it doesn’t entice the legislature to basically ignore this funding obligation,” he said.

Ball said she was OK with making a request annually. “And I will assure you that I will continue to be at the legislature consistently making sure they understand their obligations,” she said.

Commissioners took Ball’s request under advisement.

Page last updated on:  January 14, 2026