Howard County Circuit Clerk and Recorder of Deeds Teresa Syferd announced that she will seek a second term. She will run on the Republican ticket in the August primary and the November General Election.

Syferd won a close primary election in 2022 by just three votes, before running unopposed in the general election. She succeeded longtime Circuit Clerk and Recorder Charlie Joe Flaspohler, who retired on Dec. 31, 2022.

Syferd cites technological updates to her office’s recording system over the last three years, including the upgrade to iCounty, a program that provides online access with daily or monthly subscriptions to Howard County Land Records.

“These subscriptions generate revenue, which pays for over half the cost of the service,” Syferd explained. “As word has spread and more citizens use the system, I anticipate that the program will eventually cover its own cost.

The program allows users to file digital documents going back years. “That way we never lose a record,” Syferd said. “When we started in January of 2023, our computer index was back to 1997. I am proud to say that we are now back to 1979, with more being added daily. Marriage License data was in the system up to 1994, and now we are back to 1929. I have also been working on scanning the image of marriage licenses. To date, I have the images back to 1962.”

Another bonus of the new recorder program, she said, is a free application called Deed Watch. Citizens of Howard County can sign up to be notified via email if any document containing their name is recorded in the Deed Records by going online to Deedwatch.com.  Questions about the program, including help signing up, should be directed to the recorder’s office at (660) 248-2194 or in person during regular business hours at the courthouse.

“I have been blessed to have inherited a well-run office from the prior Circuit Clerk and Recorder, Charlie Joe Flaspohler,” Syferd said. “My staff continues to do an exceptional job in helping me serve our citizens, and I’m so grateful for their daily hard work. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the citizens of Howard County these past three years, and I hope they will allow me to serve them for four more.”