'Abysmal in all caps': NC lawmakers grill state DMV commissioner

"Individuals are having trouble making appointments, getting permits or licenses, and ending up waiting long, extreme hours in long lines," said Joint Transportation Oversight committee Chairman Sen. Michael Lazzara, R-Onslow, in opening comments. "One new resident described his experience in an email as 'abysmal' in all caps."

DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, who attended the meeting with a phalanx of staff experts, conceded "a few hiccups along the way," but he said the agency is making swift progress in some areas, especially staffing shortages.

"While we've made a host of changes and improvements over the last two years, we recognize that this agency is not perfect. None of us are," Goodwin said. "And we have a lot to learn and a lot to do."

While many of the questions centered on customer experience, the panel also had many questions about third-party license plate agencies or LPAs, which are small businesses that contract with the state to handle license plate purchases and replacements.

Four LPAs were shut down by the DMV in the past two years due to contract or legal violations: one each in Holly Springs and Huntersville in 2022, and one each in Southport and Jacksonville in 2023.

Lawmakers who represent the districts where those LPAs operated had a lot of questions about the process, calling it "pretty punitive."

"What typically prompts an investigation into an LPA?" asked Rep. Steve Tyson, R-Craven. "Is it a complaint from a customer, or do you have people out just snooping around the offices?"

DMV program analyst Judy Schmidinger, who oversees LPAs, explained that some complaints come from customers, while others problems are sometimes noticed by program auditors. She said the agency works with contractors to bring them into compliance when that's an option, but some issues trigger an immediate shutdown without advance notice.

"When it's a violation of law, there's really not a warning," Schmidinger explained. "When we complete our investigations behind the scenes, if there is a violation of a state law, we have to protect the public from further violations."

Other lawmakers returned to a dispute between the general assembly and the DMV over the origin of a recommendation to extend license renewals from eight years to 16 years. Shortly after it became law in the 2023 budget, the DMV told reporters the provision violated the federal requirements of the REAL ID act, which changed the federal standard for identification.

Goodwin claimed at the time his agency had not recommended the provision to lawmakers. He later conceded the idea had first originated from the DMV.

"We've been thrown under a bus to the media and to the Board of Transportation by someone in your agency, and we were told it was you," Sen. Carl Ford, R-Rowan, told Goodwin. "I'm not sure of that, personally. What do we do going forward? And hopefully we'll never make these mistakes again."

Goodwin characterized it as a miscommunication.

"It is important that we correct this, and we apologize for the mistake that was made," he said. "But as I indicated before, I was new to this. Even though we want to shorten lines and shorten wait times all we can, there are constraints in the federal law that we now know more about."

Goodwin assured the panel that the agency is moving quickly to replace its outdated technology, and has made much progress in getting customers to go online to complete many transactions. But lawmakers didn't seem mollified. Lazzara noted in his closing statement that the DMV has "significant room for improvement."

"As legislators, a broken DMV is a broken promise to our constituents," Lazzara said. "This division has the largest customer facing role in our state's government and instead of providers are, it's a source of frustration and disruption to the lives of our citizens. Commissioner Goodwin, unfortunately, this responsibility belongs to you."