Honorable Teresa Kiel

TERESA KIEL is the County Clerk of Guadalupe County, Texas, which is located approximately one hundred miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico in south central Texas and is a component of the San Antonio Area Metropolitan Statistical Area. The County population is approximately 150,000 and continues to be one of the fastest growing areas in the state.

Mrs. Kiel has been involved in the Land Title/Real Estate Industry since 1982, working in various capacities for title companies and law firms in the Comal and Guadalupe County, Texas area. She has maintained her Texas Real Estate License since 1985. In 1993 she began managing multimillion-dollar installation projects for a software solutions company, installing, training and supporting County Clerk's offices throughout the United States and US Virgin Islands. She received numerous awards including Excellence in Customer Service, Employee of the Month and the prestigious Chairman’s Award for Excellence. She loved the work so much she decided to run for office in her home county. She was elected Guadalupe County Clerk and took office in January 2003.

Mrs. Kiel is currently serving her fourth term as Guadalupe County Clerk handling all manner of county records from birth to death and beyond: including real and personal property, judgment, military discharge, TABC, assumed names, cattle brands, birth, marriage, death, probate, and many other records. She serves as clerk of the court for misdemeanor, civil, probate, mental health and guardianship proceedings and clerk of county commissioners’ court. In her role as County Clerk she also serves on the Bail Bond Board and as the Records Management Officer for the County.

Mrs. Kiel sees her primary mission as serving the interests of the entire community by enabling good government through the innovative use of technology. An example of her commitment to that mission has been in preserving and protecting the County’s history that is recorded in our historical documents dating back to the 1820’s. Our vendor has a very tedious and extensive process to remove all old tape, repair torn or damaged pages and then create an electronic image of the page. They enhance the image if necessary; then de-acidify each page which allows the record to be pliable. They place each page into a sleeve that preserves the record from oils and dirt. These sleeves/pages are then placed into a Disaster Safe Binder which protects the pages from water and fire.

Going hand-in-hand with the preservation project is her ongoing vision of a "paperless office". This initiative seeks to reduce and in some cases eliminate the use of paper in the filing and storage of official documents and public records. The key components of this initiative are the scanning and electronic imaging of all new and existing documents and the creation of an electronic filing system that allows the public to file records and documents without having to come to the courthouse. This allows for more efficient, cost-effective operations, insures preservation of all records, and enables increased access to information.

Mrs. Kiel has attended countless hours of continuing education with regard to enhancement and problem solving techniques, communication skills and leadership development, to name a few. She is a graduate of the 2012 Texas Association of Counties Executive Leadership Class. She is often asked to speak at numerous conferences throughout the state of Texas regarding the duties and roles of a County Clerk. She has become an information resource to many of the elected officials in Texas over the years and doesn’t hesitate to pass on knowledge and experience helping others.

Mrs. Kiel currently serves as the Vice President of the Urban Recorders Alliance (URA) and is Past President of the County & District Clerks' Association of Texas (CDCAT). She has served as Secretary, Treasurer, and Vice President and continues to serve on numerous committees within the CDCAT organization. She has been on the legislative committee for the past 12 years and currently serves as ‘Chair’ for the County Clerk Legislative Committee. She works directly with many legislators, the Texas Land Title Association, the County Judges & Commissioners Association, the County & District Attorney’s Association, the State Bar of Texas and many others regarding proposed legislation. During the Texas legislative session, she can be found at the Capitol testifying and providing solutions to issues affecting local government in Texas.

She is a member of the National Association of Counties (NACO), Property Records Industry Association (PRIA) and International Association of Government Officials (IGO formerly IACREOT/NACRC).

Mrs. Kiel is a member of the Sterling Silver Dance Team and has been performing at the San Antonio SPURS home games for the past 8 years. She is married to Ken and they have two amazing sons (Kevin & Ryan); one adorable daughter-in-law (Alyssa); one grandson (Kason) and 4 dogs.

"I am so honored and thankful the citizens of Guadalupe County have entrusted me to serve as their elected County Clerk. I pledge to do my best to provide exceptional customer service while recording the history of Guadalupe County and make the citizens proud of the work that is being accomplished in the County Clerk's office. Thank you for allowing us to serve you!"