County looking at merging DMV, licensing offices
WALLACE — A multi-department meeting earlier this week with the BOCC has ignited some discussions about the possibility of Shoshone County merging their Department of Motor Vehicles and their licensing office.
Both of the offices currently operate autonomously, with the DMV being located in the basement of the Shoshone County Courthouse and the licensing office in the foyer of the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office.
Both entities are separate in nature, but residents tend to end up confused as to which office does what, which can lead to some frustration.
On the flip side of things, both of these departments are generally understaffed and have become national punchlines due to their difficulty of use.
Shoshone County assessor Jerry White, along with Sheriff Mike Gunderson met with the commissioners to discuss the potential for merging the departments into one singular office and possibly cross training the employees to be able to handle both department’s duties.
White got to witness firsthand what life in the DMV is like when he filled in that office last week.
“Working in DMV last week brought home what staff has been trying to tell me for several months and that is our DMV is getting extremely busy,” White said.
The busyness of the department, while good for business in Shoshone County, is also indicative of how bad things have gotten at the Kootenai County DMV offices.
“The increasing influx of the Kootenai County population are forcing very long wait times in their two DMV departments (both their Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls offices) sometimes up to several-hour wait times,” White said. “People are finding out that we have very short wait times. We would like to still offer the same quality, friendly service with short wait times to Shoshone County residents.”
This is where the planning phase comes in as both entities, while similar in nature, work in almost completely different circles.
DMV handles licensing and registration of all motor vehicles, while the licensing office handles driver’s licenses and things like the sex offender registry.
“To do this will require a little more help and planning,” White said. “If we were to put the two departments together and cross train staff, then hopefully if one department is slow and the other is busy, that would relieve some of it. And if we have to hire additional help, maybe that could be reduced with the one-stop-shop and cross training. At the same time, utilize our limited space more efficiently. Working in DMV last week I witnessed the main clerk work from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. without as much as a break or lunch hour and phone's going unanswered for several hours.”
With the BOCC looking into what it would take to make this happen, it is nice to see multiple departments working together for the betterment of the community.
“Shoshone County wants to provide for its citizens the best quality services in an efficient and cost effective way,” BOCC chairman Mike Fitzgerald said. “The commissioners are always open to improvement ideas. This joint department discussion regarding licensing and the DMV is a good example.”
As these ideas are still in the early stages, the Shoshone News-Press will continue to monitor the story as it develops.