NC DMV head tells lawmakers wait times have fallen as he commits to overhaul of agency

A hiring blitz and process improvements at North Carolina's beleaguered Division of Motor Vehicles have helped cut average customer wait times by 31% in recent months — even as the number of office visits increases, DMV officials told state lawmakers Wednesday.

The average wait time is currently about 90 minutes, down from more than two hours in July, DMV Commissioner Paul Tine told members of the House Select Committee on Government Efficiency. An April survey found an average walk-in wait time of more than three hours. The number of in-office issuances has increased 7% to 643,000 in the fiscal year to date. The improvement follows the recent hiring of dozens of DMV examiners.

The committee questioned Tine and Department of Transportation Secretary Daniel Johnson about efforts to improve operations at the DMV, where overworked staff and long lines have become a source of frustration for residents across the state. Tine told lawmakers that staffing, process and technological improvements have been key. "We're nowhere near where we need to, but the tone in the offices is better," he said.  

The Office of the State Auditor released two audits in August that detailed a deteriorating customer experience at the DMV, including increasing wait times caused in part by employee burnout, low staffing and aging technology. North Carolina's population jumped 30%, but DMV staffing only jumped 10% over the last 15 years, members of the auditor's office testified Wednesday. “We probably needed some more positions to go along with that," Katie Gleason, the state's performance audit director, told lawmakers. Auditors also reported that while the DMV generates about 30% of revenue for the DOT, it receives less than 3% of the department's expenditures.

The auditor’s office found that an overwhelmed workforce was a major contributor to long lines at DMV offices across the state — particularly as the division deals with a crush of newcomers and existing residents needing services, including upgraded IDs to meet new federal standards. The auditor’s office said its findings suggested a dysfunctional relationship between the DMV and the DOT. The auditor has also said more flexibility is needed in current state personnel rules to allow the DMV to hire and retain staff more effectively.

Tine has promised to reduce wait times and improve customer experience by implementing numerous staffing and technological changes. His plans have included enhancing a queuing system to include capacity limits, which were projected to reduce instances of customers being turned away at the end of the day after waiting for hours. He wants to streamline other processes for workers to make it easier for customers to receive services.

"We're open for business," Tine told lawmakers. "Just because you can't find an appointment online doesn't mean that you can't come in and be served at DMV. And 87% of the people on a day-to-day basis come into our offices" without appointments.

Tine expects to complete a strategic plan and staffing plan for the division by Dec. 1. He’s also working on boosting data analysis to track performance and improvements. To improve morale, DMV officials have held listening tours at most of its offices and they have increased weekly communication with staff.

Tine has sought to make room in DMV office schedules for more morning walk-in customers. The division is now accepting walk-in customers all day, according to the DMV presentation, instead of reserving a portion of office hours for appointments only. "Having appointments available would be much more convenient for folks," Tine said. "But right now, we've had such a backlog, my main focus is get people through the door as quickly as possible."

The division has also boosted Saturday hours to ease midweek workloads. Recent technology upgrades have reduced hundreds of thousands of potential physical interactions at DMV locations, Tine previously said.

Tine has also credited legislative changes with easing the ID-renewal process and workload on the division. And he said the division is working on a request for funding and flexibility with job requisitions.

State lawmakers approved $1.2 million in funding for the division in August to hire more license examiner positions. More than 60 new positions created by the funding were filled less than a month after the money was approved — a considerable feat, considering the state has had difficulty filling jobs across agencies as it competes for talent with the private sector. About 4.1% of the DMV’s examiner positions are currently vacant, down from 10.9% in April, according to the DMV presentation.

Lawmakers approved additional funding for several new DMV offices in fast-growing parts of the state, including the Wake County town of Fuquay-Varina. To help manage long lines across the state, Gov. Josh Stein signed a law in July allowing a two-year grace period for standard driver’s licenses that expire through Dec. 31, 2027, although the licenses won’t be eligible for everything. Lawmakers also have made it easier for customers to renew identification cards by reducing the number of required office visits for certain renewals.

Despite the improvements, Rep. Keith Kidwell, a committee chairman, said he still hears from constituents who are frustrated with the DMV — unable to get a license for a child or waiting months for an appointment. “It’s been a nightmare,” said Kidwell, R-Beaufort. “That’s not changed by a whole lot.”

He added: “We need to fix that and we need to fix that, not tomorrow, we need to fix that yesterday."

Tine acknowledged that there's more work to do and lawmakers, who seemed encouraged by the recent progress, appeared open to helping more.

"We will continue to work to fix things," Tine said. "We are certainly nowhere near where we need to be at this time. And so each and every time that we hear something, we will address it and see how we can progress forward."