Federal law on additional IDs for licenses will hurt DMV

Thursday, May 12, 2005 | 10:54 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A proposed federal law that would require additional forms of identification to obtain driver's licenses will mean a "significant" increase DMV workload and will increase wait times at the agency's Clark County offices unless government is willing to spend more money.

The proposed law has passed the U.S. Senate as part of the funding for the war in Iraq, and its progress had Ginny Lewis, director of the state Department of Motor Vehicles, telling a legislative budget committee today about the significant impact it would have on her department.

For one thing, her staff would have to validate the federal documents that are shown by the customers when applying for driver's licenses or state identification cards.

The states would have three years to implement the new law but Lewis said she does not know how much money the government will provide the states to comply.

"We're very concerned," she said. But the budget impact on the state would not be felt until the 2007 Legislature.

If the state does not comply, the federal government will not recognize the driver's license of a person from that state. So an individual may not be able to get aboard an airline, if asked for identification, she said.

Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, raised the subject. She said it would have a "tremendous impact" on the state. The law would "turn DMV clerks into homeland security agents," she complained.

Lewis also said her agency would have to temporarily retain every document provided by a person to prove citizenship or the right to be in the country. Reducing wait times at DMV offices in Clark County has been a long running battle, spurred on by the many public complaints about long wait times.

Several years ago, the wait time for customers of the DMV was several hours. Gov. Kenny Guinn set a goal of less than one hour. The department has trimmed the time to less than an hour in all its offices in Clark County and would hate to see the times inrease again, Lewis said.

In April the average wait times were 38 minutes at the office in Henderson, 41 minutes at Sahara, 46 minutes at West Flamingo and 50 minutes at Carey.