CT Department of Motor Vehicles Grapples with Budget Cuts

This week, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy released a revised proposal to help balance Connecticut’s $1.6 billion deficit. In addition to the elimination of 6,560 state positions, the plan also cuts funding to the Department of Motor Vehicles, among other cost-cutting measures.

The department’s reductions include 123 layoffs, 28 eliminated vacant positions, 10 retirements, 28 positions now paid through emissions funds and 2 positions paid general funds for the boating services.

Additionally, by Aug. 11, branch offices in Old Saybrook, Danbury, Enfield and New Britain will close along with the Putnam satellite office and the photo license centers in Derby, Middletown and Milford.

"Through a mix of layoffs and painful spending cuts we have eliminated the $1.6 billion deficit," Governor Malloy and Lieutenant Governor Wyman said in a joint statement.

"This budget is balanced, it’s balanced honestly, and it begins the long overdue process of downsizing Connecticut’s state government to make it one that taxpayers can afford."

The DMV is one facet of the state government in the process of being downsized. In response to the budget cuts, the DMV released a statement today detailing office closures and its plan to streamline services in wake of the cuts.

The DMV is preparing an extensive reorganization, according to the release, including the closing of some offices, to "both meet imposed budget constraints and provide core public services amid these financially difficult times."

The agency will attempt to regionalize services in order to accompdate larger numbers of customers with fewer employees.

"This is the direction we must move because of the very severe fiscal constraints the state faces,” said DMV Commissioner Melody A. Currey. “Most definitely there will be affects on customers, but our goal is also to maintain the core services we provide to the millions of people statewide,” she added.

The DMV is hoping to streamline services by:

• Regionalizing driver license testing that will require people statewide to go to select offices with large-scale license-permit testing processes. 30 or more people, for example, would be tested at once and overseen by agency officials.
• AAA offices, which now do photo-license renewals, are expected to add renewals of DMV-issued identification cards and will be able to issue duplicate licenses. Time schedules for these additions have not been determined yet.
• As part of the nearly 123-person reduction, the DMV will streamline its management structure. This will include top-level managers overseeing major customer service and policy areas.
• Consolodate services by providing access to online registration services to automobile dealers currently without it. According to the proposal, by September 1, those without online access will be able to take the paperwork to one of 25 “hubs” around the state where online access will be available. 
• Beginning July 1, the DMV started enforcing an existing policy that requires all renewals to be mailed. Customers bringing a registration renewal to an office will be given a pre-addressed envelope for mailing the registration to the DMV’s processing unit.
• As of July 5, the  DMV eliminated the second knowledge test that was required of 16 and 17-year-old drivers after they completed their training. The elimination of the second test led to a reduced work staff to be able to focus on other customers.
• Mediation services for customers who file a dealer or repairer complaint that does not allege a specific violation of state law or regulations will be eliminated. Instead, they will be advised to file their complaint in small-claims court, reducing the complaint staff from 5 people to 1 person.

Commissioner Currey said department staff is currently reviewing further ways to streamline and make any technological changes to aid in department efficiency.

A major project is currently underway to make it easy for customers to do a number of services online. According to the DMV, the effort focuses on changing DMV computer systems so that customers can be served more quickly when doing business with the agency.

Project details include an online service for customers to cancel a marker plate when theirs is lost or stolen, a registration verification system to check on whether a vehicle is properly registered in the state, the design of an improved process for issuing new dealer and repairer licenses online and the development of a process to be able to scan documents at home and send them directly to the DMV

In their joint release, Malloy and Wyman said the plan submitted today to the legislature contains a lot of painful spending cuts.

"Coupled with the list of layoffs we released yesterday, we are entirely aware of the impact this plan will have on the lives of thousands of our fellow state employees and their families, and people across Connecticut who have become used to a certain level of services provided by state government. We will do our best to mitigate that impact. As everyone knows, this was not the path we chose, but at this juncture, it is the only path we can take."

A complete copy of the budget can be found here.