Volunteer Fire Fighter license plate

The Department of Licensing is now offering two brand new special license plates and a redesigned version of our state’s most popular collegiate plate.

A new Volunteer Fire Fighter license plate is only available to people with a record of volunteer service with a fire district or fire department. This plate will benefit the Washington State Fire Fighters’ Association’s Benevolent Fund.

Music Matters license plate

Anyone can purchase the new Music Matters license plate benefiting music education through Music Aid Northwest. The money raised will help schools to continue offering quality music programs.

Cougar license plate

You can check out all of the specialty license plates available and learn more about costs and requirements at the DOL website.

In a story broadcast during the 11 p.m. newscast on January 23, 2012, KING 5 stated that DOL operated facial recognition software for regular driver license and ID card transactions without legal authority. This is a false statement. DOL was fully authorized to operate this system as a pilot program by our state’s 2009-2011 transportation budget. This budget, passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor on May 13, 2009, contained this provision:

“(7) The department may seek federal funds to implement a driver’s license and identicard biometric matching system pilot program to verify the identity of applicants for, and holders of, drivers’ licenses and identicards. If funds are received, the department shall report any benefits or problems identified during the course of the pilot program to the transportation committees of the legislature upon the completion of the program.”

The pilot program ended when the 2009-2011 transportation budget expired. We are now working with the Legislature to make the use of this technology a permanent part of our processes.

DOL appreciates KING 5’s efforts to keep the public informed about the use of our facial recognition system, but it is important for the public to understand that DOL has not used this system in any way that was not fully authorized by law.

The use of facial recognition in our Enhanced Driver License program and in our regular driver license and ID card processes during the pilot program from November 2009 through June 2011 has demonstrated a need to have this system in place to make sure DOL is doing everything possible to protect public safety and the personal identity information of our state’s residents.

The use of facial recognition in our Enhanced Driver License program and our pilot program has identified three primary reasons individuals fraudulently obtain multiple driver licenses or ID cards. These are:

• To continue driving after a driver license suspension or revocation

• To purchase or consume alcohol as a minor

• To engage in criminal activities including identity theft

In 2011, the use of facial recognition by our agency resulted in 571 driver license suspensions and the cancellation of 560 fraudulent records and the associated cards. We also are working our way through 3,800 more cases of fraud identified by the facial recognition system during the pilot program.

Our facial recognition system also has allowed us to identify cases where individuals were maintaining multiple identities to fraudulently collect benefits through state entitlement programs.

Off-road motorcycle

Starting January 1, 2012, owners of off-road motorcycles that modify them to meet all applicable state motor vehicle safety standards can apply for license plates that will allow the modified motorcycle to be used on public streets and highways.

This change is the result of Substitute Senate Bill 5800 passed by the Washington State Legislature in April 2011.  

Off-road motorcycle owners wishing to take advantage of this change must add all of the safety equipment required by this new law and then work with a state-licensed motorcycle dealer or repair shop to complete a Motorcycle Highway Use Declaration form. The licensed dealer or repair shop will inspect the off-road motorcycle and certify that all required equipment has been added.

You can learn more about the details of making an off-road motorcycle legal for street use at the Department of Licensing website.

By October, calls to the DOL Customer Service Center about driver license reinstatements dropped by 36 percent. Not only does this demonstrate that lots of suspended drivers are taking advantage of this new self-service option, it also allows our customer service representatives to help other folks with driver license questions more quickly.

“The only ‘official provider’ of Department of Licensing forms is the Department of Licensing, and they are free,” says DOL director Alan Haight. He says that the agency website is safe, secure and offers a lot of time-saving services.

Customers should always make sure they’re on DOL’s website, as it always starts with www.dol.wa.gov. Web browsers on the secure portions of the site, like driver license renewal, address change or other services will display that they have a secure connection by using a padlock icon or something similar, as well as displaying https:// as the prefix of the web address. You will also see fortress.wa.gov as the web address on secure state websites.

Some search engines can also return advertisements in the form of ‘sponsored links,’ which can lead users to sites that aren’t what they think they are, so make sure that you know who you are doing business with on the internet, before you give any personal information or click send.

After 21 office closures or modifications and other additional budget cuts, DOL continues to add new services to its website. The latest, rolled out in September, allows people who have moved to change their address online. It’s required by law that the address is kept up to date.

Drivers and ID card holders can go to dol.wa.gov to change their address, replace a lost or stolen card and get a copy of their driving record. Most people can also renew their driver license or ID card online every other time it is due for renewal.

“We are building a system in very tight budget times that allows many people to only have to visit one of our offices every ten years,” DOL Director Alan Haight said. “This is allowing our existing staff to keep up with the in-office demands of about 5.2 million drivers, a number that is increasing every day.”

Haight says that the agency is on track to serve more than 500,000 transactions over the web in 2011, a dramatic increase from 120,000 three years ago. He says the web will help the agency simply keep up with the growing state population.

The agency typically sees the highest customer volumes and office wait times during the summer months. This year, though, office wait times were significantly lower, averaging less than 30 minutes statewide.

“These are tough economic times for families and government alike, but we can’t let cuts to our budget stop us from providing customers with faster, more convenient service options,” Haight said. “These types of services are more important than ever.”

State law requires that you change your address within ten days of a move.

DOL created a YouTube channel and began posting public service videos in March 2009. Our goal for the videos is to provide customer service, public safety, and consumer protection information directly to consumers in a way many favor.

In addition to being available on YouTube, the videos are featured on the DOL Internet website, often located in places that support more detailed written information about a topic. Several videos focus on consumer protection issues like buying a car or what to look for when renting a limousine.

The most popular videos include a four-part series designed to help people become familiar with the parts of the driver licensing road test that many consider the most challenging. As a series, these four videos have been viewed more than a half million times since they were posted 10 months ago. Similar videos that illustrate the motorcycle endorsement road test also have been very popular.

Starting on September 1, the test will require drivers to complete a third backing-up exercise. Along with this, the test’s scoring system is being updated to expand a tester’s ability to evaluate the driver’s performance during the road test. New testing procedures that will better measure a commercial driver’s ability to perform a commercial vehicle inspection will be adopted in 2012.

These changes, developed by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and endorsed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, will bring Washington in line with national CDL knowledge and skills testing standards. The new testing procedures have been added to DOL’s Commercial Driver Guide and more information about the changes also is posted on the Department of Licensing website.

If your driver license is suspended due to unpaid traffic tickets, a DUI or a number of other things, it can be a challenge to navigate the court system to get it back. For the nearly 300,000 Washingtonians with a suspended license, things are about to get a little easier.

We’ve rolled out a new web-based service that shows people what they need to do and who they need to contact to get their license back. Users can securely enter their personal information and the system will provide a printable list of the court issues and state requirements needing to be resolved. It also provides contact information for each item. It is available at the DOL website.