Buford, Ohio Public Records

For misdemeanor offenses and traffic violations, Buford residents may appear before the Hillsboro Municipal Court at 130 North High Street, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-9957, which exercises jurisdiction over minor criminal matters, traffic citations, and civil cases up to $15,000 occurring throughout Highland County. Small claims matters up to $6,000 are also handled through the Hillsboro Municipal Court's small claims division. Court records for both courts can be searched online through Ohio's statewide system. The Highland County Clerk of Courts maintains case records and provides public access through the office at 114 Governor Foraker Place, phone (937) 393-1785. Many Highland County court records are accessible through the Ohio Supreme Court's public access portal at www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/rod, which provides free case searches by party name, case number, or attorney. The Highland County Common Pleas Court also maintains a local case docket at www.highlandcountyohio.com. Certified copies of court documents cost $2.00 for the first page and $0.25 for each additional page as set by Ohio Revised Code Section 2303.26, plus a $1.00 certification fee. Exemplified copies with the court seal cost an additional $2.00. Case filing fees vary by case type: civil complaint filings start at $175, divorce petitions cost $200, and probate estate filings range from $95 to $175 depending on estate value. The Clerk of Courts office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and accepts cash, checks, and credit cards for fee payments.

The online system displays current assessed values, property characteristics, tax amounts, payment history, and ownership transfer history. Property tax bills, exemptions, and agricultural use valuations (CAUV) are also accessible through the Auditor's portal. For recorded documents including deeds, mortgages, liens, easements, and other instruments affecting real property title, the Highland County Recorder's Office is located at 114 Governor Foraker Place, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-1931. The Recorder's Office maintains all land records dating back to Highland County's formation in 1805. Many recorded documents are available for free online searching through the Highland County Recorder's website at www.highlandcountyrecorder.org, which provides document images and indexes searchable by grantor/grantee name, property address, or instrument number. Recording fees are set by Ohio Revised Code Section 317.32: $34.00 for the first two pages of most documents and $8.00 for each additional page. The Recorder's office is open Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Highland County also provides a GIS parcel viewer accessible through the Auditor's website, offering aerial photography, property boundaries, zoning information, and floodplain data overlays for Buford parcels. Title searchers and real estate professionals can conduct comprehensive property searches using both the Auditor's tax records and Recorder's document images to establish complete ownership chains and encumbrance histories.

Manufacturing provides employment through facilities in nearby Hillsboro, including R+L Carriers, one of Highland County's largest private employers with over 400 local workers, and Hillsboro Industries (automotive components). Healthcare employment centers on Highland District Hospital in Hillsboro, which employs approximately 400 area residents. Education employment comes from the Bright Local School District serving Buford, Highland County government, and Southern State Community College in Hillsboro. The median household income for Brush Creek Township is estimated at approximately $42,000 to $48,000, below the Ohio state median, reflecting the rural agricultural economy and limited industrial base. Highland County overall has experienced population decline over recent decades as agricultural mechanization reduced farm labor demand and younger residents migrated to urban employment centers. Rocky Fork Lake State Park, located just miles from Buford, contributes tourism and seasonal recreation revenue to the local economy. Recent economic development efforts have focused on attracting light manufacturing and logistics operations to the Hillsboro area, leveraging proximity to major highways connecting Cincinnati, Columbus, and Portsmouth. Buford remains primarily a bedroom community for workers employed in Hillsboro and surrounding towns, with limited commercial development within the community itself due to its unincorporated status and small population base.

Buford, Ohio has no municipal police department due to its unincorporated status. Law enforcement services for Buford and all of Brush Creek Township are provided exclusively by the Highland County Sheriff's Office, headquartered at 1575 North High Street, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-1421. The Sheriff's Office maintains jurisdiction over all unincorporated areas of Highland County, handling patrol operations, criminal investigations, traffic enforcement, and emergency response for Buford residents. To request police reports, incident records, or accident reports for events occurring in Buford, residents must contact the Highland County Sheriff's Office directly during regular business hours, typically requiring completion of a public records request form and payment of copying fees as established by Ohio Revised Code Section 149.43, which mandates that public offices make records available at cost. The Sheriff's Office website at www.co.highland.oh.us/sheriff.html provides contact information and general procedures, though online report requests are not currently available. For arrest records and jail bookings, the Highland County Sheriff's Office operates the Highland County Justice Center detention facility at the same Hillsboro location. Current inmate information can be searched through the Highland County Sheriff's online inmate roster at www.highlandcountysheriff.com or by calling the jail at (937) 393-1421 extension 5. The online roster typically displays inmate names, booking dates, charges filed, bond amounts, and booking photographs when available. Under Ohio Revised Code Section 149.43, arrest records, booking logs, and incident reports are generally considered public records unless sealed by court order or involving juvenile offenders. Requesters should provide specific details such as case numbers, dates of incidents, or names of involved parties to facilitate searches. Processing times vary based on request complexity, but the Sheriff's Office typically fulfills routine requests within 3-7 business days as required by Ohio's prompt compliance standard for public records requests.

Birth certificates for births occurring in Highland County cost $25.00 for a certified copy, with a processing time of approximately 4-6 weeks for mail requests or 10-15 business days for online orders placed through www.vitalchek.com, which charges an additional service fee of approximately $12.95. Only the individual named on the certificate (if age 18 or older), parents listed on the certificate, legal guardians, or legal representatives may request certified copies, with valid government-issued photo identification required. Death certificates cost $25.00 for the first copy and $19.00 for each additional copy ordered simultaneously, available to family members, legal representatives, and those with a direct legal interest in the decedent's estate. The Ohio Department of Health maintains centralized birth records from December 20, 1908 forward and death records from January 1, 1937 forward. For older records, requests must be made to the Highland County Probate Court. Marriage licenses for Buford residents are issued by the Highland County Probate Court at 114 Governor Foraker Place, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-1645. The marriage license fee is $55.00, reduced to $30.00 for couples who complete a premarital counseling program. Licenses are valid for 60 days from issuance. Certified copies of marriage records cost $2.00 for the first page and $0.25 for each additional page. Highland County marriage records dating back to 1806 are maintained by the Probate Court, with many recent records searchable online through the Highland County Probate Court website at www.highlandcountyprobatecourt.com. Divorce records are maintained as case files in the Highland County Court of Common Pleas Domestic Relations Division and are available through the Clerk of Courts at (937) 393-1785. Certified divorce decrees cost $2.00 plus $0.25 per page after the first. Ohio law restricts access to adoption records and requires court orders for sealed birth certificates involving adoptions.

Fictitious name registrations (DBA – "doing business as") for sole proprietors and partnerships operating in Buford must be filed with the Highland County Clerk of Courts at 114 Governor Foraker Place, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-1785, at a filing fee of approximately $35.00 to $40.00. DBAs are recorded in the county trade name index, though online searching of Highland County fictitious names is not currently available and requires in-person or phone inquiries. For formal business entity formation, the Ohio Secretary of State, Business Services Division, maintains the statewide registry of corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs), limited partnerships, and other registered entities. The Ohio Business Central database at www.businessexpress.ohio.gov provides free online searching of all registered business entities, displaying entity status (active, dissolved, cancelled), registered agent information, formation date, principal office address, and authorized representatives. LLC formation costs $99.00 and corporation formation costs $125.00, both filed through the Secretary of State's online portal or by mail to P.O. Box 670, Columbus, OH 43216. Annual reports are not required for Ohio LLCs, though corporations must file a franchise tax report. UCC financing statement searches for secured transactions and liens on business personal property are conducted through the Ohio Secretary of State UCC Division at www.sos.state.oh.us/ucc, with online searches available for $25.00 and certified lien searches costing $50.00. Commercial property owners in Buford can look up their business property tax assessments through the Highland County Auditor's online portal at www.highlandcountyauditor.org, which lists all real property valuations, tax rates, and payment histories. Business personal property (equipment, inventory, furniture) must be reported annually to the Highland County Auditor by the first Monday in March for tax assessment purposes.

Buford, Ohio voters are served by the Highland County Board of Elections, located at 1575 North High Street, Suite 200, Hillsboro, OH 45133, phone (937) 393-9961, website www.boe.highland.oh.us. This office administers all federal, state, county, and local elections for Buford residents and handles voter registration, absentee ballot processing, and election results certification. Ohio residents can register to vote online through the Ohio Secretary of State's website at www.OhioSOS.gov/elections/voters/register, by mail using a National Voter Registration Form, or in person at the Highland County Board of Elections. The voter registration deadline is 30 days before any election. Applicants must provide an Ohio driver's license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number, and first-time voters may need to provide proof of residency. As an unincorporated community, Buford has no municipal government and therefore no city council or mayoral elections. Residents vote in Brush Creek Township trustee elections (three trustees, four-year staggered terms) and Highland County offices including county commissioners, sheriff, auditor, treasurer, recorder, prosecutor, clerk of courts, engineer, and coroner. Buford voters also participate in state legislative elections for Ohio House District 90 and Ohio Senate District 14. Polling place assignments for Buford residents can be found using the polling location lookup tool at www.ohiosos.gov/elections/voters/toolkit/polling-location or by contacting the Highland County Board of Elections at (937) 393-9961. Most Buford residents vote at Brush Creek Township Community Center or similar local precincts depending on their precise address within the township. In the November 2024 presidential election, Highland County reported approximately 58% voter turnout with roughly 11,500 ballots cast out of approximately 19,800 registered voters, with Republican candidates carrying the county by approximately 70-28 margins in most races, reflecting the county's strong conservative lean. Looking ahead to the November 3, 2026 general election, Buford and Highland County voters will decide several significant races: Ohio Governor (incumbent Mike DeWine's term expires, though 2026 candidates not yet declared as of early 2025), all Ohio constitutional offices including Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor, and Treasurer, all 99 Ohio House seats including District 90, approximately half of the 33 Ohio Senate seats including potential redistricting effects, and Highland County offices including County Commissioner (one seat on the three-member board), Prosecuting Attorney, and potentially Sheriff depending on term cycles. All Highland County Council of Governments positions and various township trustees including Brush Creek Township will also be on the ballot. U.S. Senate races do not occur in 2026 for Ohio as Senator Sherrod Brown and Senator-elect Bernie Moreno (elected 2024) will not be up for re-election until 2028 and 2030 respectively. Ohio voters may also see statewide ballot issues regarding constitutional amendments or legislative referenda. Ohio offers no-excuse absentee voting, meaning any registered voter may request an absentee ballot without providing a reason. Absentee ballot applications can be submitted online through the Ohio Secretary of State's website, by mail, or in person at the Highland County Board of Elections beginning January 1 of the election year. Applications must be received by noon the Saturday before Election Day (for mail delivery) or in person until 3:00 PM the day before Election Day. Voted absentee ballots must be postmarked by the day before Election Day and received within 10 days after Election Day, or deposited in the secure drop box at the Board of Elections by 7:30 PM on Election Day. Public election records in Ohio include voter registration lists (available for purchase by campaigns and parties, with personal information like birthdates redacted), campaign finance reports filed by candidates and PACs (searchable at www.ohiosos.gov), candidate petition filings and statements, and precinct-level election results. The Highland County Board of Elections posts unofficial results on election night at www.boe.highland.oh.us and certifies official results within approximately two weeks. Historical election data, voter turnout statistics, and demographic breakdowns are available through public records requests to the Board of Elections.