The Treasurer is the Chief Investment Officer of the county and is responsible for the following:

Collection

The County Treasurer receives all monies collected by various other county departments for fees and keeps a record of these deposits.  Daily financial statements of these deposits are prepared and submitted to the County Auditor.  Monthly financial statements must be prepared and balanced with the County Auditor.  Also, the County Treasurer redeems all warrants (checks) issued by the County Auditor.

Payment Options

Taxes may be paid by credit card or electronic check at: GOV PAY (click here) .  Credit card payments will be accepted at the counter or over the phone at the Putnam County Treasurer’s Office.  Gov- Pay charges a 2.65% ($3.00 minimum) convenience fee on each transaction and electronic check is a flat $2.00 fee.  These fees are NOT charged by Putnam County nor is any part of the fee retained by the county.

Investment

The County Treasurer invests un-disbursed funds for various periods of time, which earns money for the county general operating fund.   In many counties, the dollars earned from investments are a major source of revenue for the county general fund.  A County Treasurer must continually monitor investments and maintain short-term investments to have enough monies readily available to pay current operating expenses from day to day.  The County Treasurer must at all times be a leader in the area of fiscal management and accountability.  Accounting records must be current and accurate.

Board and commissions

By law, the Treasurer serves on numerous Boards including: Investment Board, Board of Revision, Budget Commission, and Fiscal Report Review Committee. 

Helpful information

Meet the Treasurer

Tracy L. (Niese) Warnecke

The Honorable Tracy L. (Niese) Warnecke was appointed Putnam County Treasurer in March 2007 to fulfill the unexpired term of Treasurer Robert L. Benroth who was elected County Auditor in November 2006.  Treasurer Warnecke is the 33^rd Treasurer.  Prior to her appointment, Warnecke worked 9 years for the Village of Ottawa.  Starting out as Payroll/Personnel Administrator, she then obtained the title of Accounting / Payroll / Personnel Administrator.  Then in 2005, Pool Operator was added to her title.  Before working for the Village of Ottawa, she was employed at Snap Products, Inc. (Pandora, OH.) as the Jr. Accountant working under the Plant Controller. Warnecke is a graduate of Ottawa-Glandorf High School and Northwestern Business College, (n.k.a. University of Northwestern Ohio).  Over the years, she has attended numerous continuing educational classes with the State Treasurer and State Auditor offices.  Warnecke and her husband live outside of Ottawa/Glandorf with their two children.

Letter from the Treasurer

The Treasurer is the Chief Investment Officer of the county.  The goal of investing public money is to protect the money while trying to maximize returns using eligible investments purchased from eligible depositories in compliance with the law.  The County Treasurer’s primary responsibility is the collection of various taxes.  The most common and largest dollar amount collected in taxes come from Real Estate .  Other taxes collected by the County Treasurer are Manufactured Home, Inheritance and Special Assessments.

The County Treasurer is the collector and safe keeper of all taxes collected in taxing districts such as schools, townships and villages.  As the tax collector for these various districts, the County Treasurer must efficiently and effectively account for all monies collected in these districts in a timely manner.  The taxing districts operate from the dollars collected by the County Treasurer.

Our office hours are Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.  Members of my staff include Lana Foppe and Jennifer Mershman.  My staff and I are ready to serve you either by phone or when you come to our office.

Sincerely,
Tracy L. Warnecke
Putnam County Treasurer