AUSTIN — Those long lines and waiting times to renew a driver’s license would be shortened considerably under legislation the Senate approved Thursday — but at a cost.
The measure, passed 26-5, would increase the cost of a license by a third — from $24 to $32 — with the additional revenue used to upgrade the state’s often-criticized driver’s license system and make renewals a less time-consuming process.
Sen. Tommy Williams, the bill’s author, said the additional revenue would allow more customer service staff to be hired — including a 31 percent increase in the Dallas-Fort Worth area — and fund facility improvements and technology upgrades.
“Our driver’s license system is in major disrepair,” said Williams, R-The Woodlands.
“In urban areas, people have three-, four- and five-hour waits to get a driver’s license.”
Williams said the goal is to have no renewal or duplicate license transaction take more than 30 minutes, with more complicated transactions, such as a first-time license, taking no more than 45 minutes.
In addition to the fee increase for a regular license — which is good for six years — fees also will be bumped up $20 for a resident commercial driver’s license and $40 for a nonresident commercial license.
Renewing online would cost an extra $1.
The fee increases will generate about $68 million a year, enabling the state to hire 326 new customer service staff members and allow the creation of new “megacenters” for driver’s licenses in Dallas and other major urban areas.
Williams said the technology upgrades will give the Texas Department of Public Safety better tools to check the identity of those applying for a license.
Texas issues about 6 million driver’s licenses and state ID cards annually.
The Senate bill, which now goes to the House, also addresses a number of homeland security concerns, although Williams deleted several provisions that had triggered opposition from minority lawmakers and civil rights groups.
Tags: waiting criticized renewals
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