ELIZABETH, NJ – Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi announced that her office has completed the transfer of millions of documents into a back-up computer system. The new system will ensure that Union County land records will be secure in the event of a weather-related emergency or other catastrophic event.
“After September 11, 2001, when Wall Street was closed for a week, we felt the repercussions of a business standstill. My office is an economic linchpin of the county,” Ms. Rajoppi said. “If people cannot conduct business, and that includes the buying and selling of property, then the economy of Union County would come to a halt. We want to do everything possible to avoid that situation.”
With that in mind, Ms. Rajoppi created a duplicate computer program partly funded by state grants that stores property records and other types of documents on a second computer at a secure off-site location a distance from her office at the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth.
“This system is compliant with all New Jersey Division of Archives and Records Management requirements and recommendations for disaster recovery,” Ms. Rajoppi added. “It allows my office to be up and running within hours in the event of a catastrophic event at our main office.”
“It is my responsibility to protect the integrity and availability of homeowners’ records – in most cases, the most valuable asset our residents own. This system ensures the continuity of operations and accessibility to those records. I hope it never has to be used, but we are prepared if we do have to use it,” Ms. Rajoppi said.
The Office of the County Clerk maintains copies of all land documents since 1857, when the County of Union was created. The documents stored on the back-up computer include deeds, mortgages, assignments, equity loans, liens, Federal tax liens, foreclosures, mortgage cancellations, notice of settlements, construction liens, trade name certificates and UCC (Uniform Commercial Code).