Department of Motor Vehicles
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In the United States of America, Department of Motor Vehicles (or DMV) is the most common name of the government agency of a U.S. state which administers the registration of automobiles (e.g., by issuing license plates), and the licensing of drivers (e.g., by issuing driver's licenses).
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Terminology and organization
Driver licensing and vehicle registration in the United States is handled by the state government in all states but Hawaii, where counties perform DMV functions. Although the federal government could theoretically take over such functions through its ability to regulate interstate commerce, it has refrained from doing so.
Names
The phrase "DMV" is most commonly used to describe the agency (where it exists), however diverse titles are used in different states:
- Bureau of Motor Vehicles (Ohio and Indiana)
- Registry of Motor Vehicles (Massachusetts)
- Motor Vehicle Division (Arizona)
- Driver and Vehicle Services Division (Minnesota)
- Motor Vehicle Administration (Maryland)
- Office of Motor Vehicles (Louisiana)
- Motor Vehicle Commission (New Jersey), but formerly called the DMV
- The organization is called the Motor Vehicle Commission, but the local offices and inspection stations refer to themselves as "Motor Vehicle Services"
- New Jersey has confusing titles for the high officeholders in this part of government: The head of the Department of Transportation is referred to as the "Commissioner," while the head of the MVC/MVS is referred to as the "Chief Administrator."
Organization within the government
Furthermore, there is much diversity in how the Department of Motor Vehicles (or equivalent) is situated within the structure of a state's government:
Hawaii is the only U.S. state where no part of the state government performs DMV functions; it has completely delegated vehicle registration and driver licensing to county governments. In the City & County of Honolulu, the functions are further delegated to an office of the Department of Finance.
In the District of Columbia, which is not part of any state, the DMV (formerly the Bureau of Motor Vehicle Services) is part of the city government.
In a few states, driver's licenses and vehicle registrations are handled by separate departments. For example, in the state of Washington, the Department of Motor Vehicles only deals with vehicle registrations, while the Department of Licensing is responsible for driver's licenses.
In others, the DMV is not a separate cabinet-level department, but instead is a division or bureau within a larger department. Examples of departments which perform DMV functions include the Department of Justice (Montana), the Department of Public Safety (Texas), the Department of Revenue (Missouri and Arkansas), and the Department of Transportation (Pennsylvania and New Jersey).
Some states do not separate DMV functions into distinct organizational entities at all, but simply bundle them into a laundry list of responsibilities assigned to an existing government agency. Thus, in Michigan and Illinois, the Secretary of State's offices perform responsibilities which would be handled by the DMV in other states.
Jurisdiction and exceptions
Usually, all long-term residents of a state must possess a driver's license issued by their state DMV, and their vehicles must show license plates (and current registration tags or stickers) issued by that agency.
The main exceptions to this rule are vehicles registered by the federal government. The Office of Foreign Missions at the U.S. Department of State has a Diplomatic Motor Vehicles program which issues driver's licenses to foreign diplomats and their dependents, registers their vehicles, and issues special "CONSUL" license plates. The General Services Administration issues vehicle plates for the federal vehicle fleet (although federal employees who drive must hold driver's licenses issued by their home state).
In some states, besides conducting the written and hands-on driving tests that are a prerequisite to earning a driver's license, DMVs also regulate private driving schools and their instructors.
Driver's licenses and identification
In countries with no national identification card (like the United States), driver's licenses have often become the de facto identification card for many purposes, and DMVs have effectively become the agency responsible for verifying identity in their respective states. See Identity documents in the United States.
The DMV in popular culture
DMVs in general have a reputation for mediocre and sometimes rude customer service and long wait times. As a result, jokes about DMVs have become common (and even somewhat of a cliché) in American comedy, and DMVs are often the subject of satire in television shows and movies.
Humor about long lines, unenthusiastic employees and departmental policies is common, as are stereotypical depictions of driving testers, usually portrayed as unsympathetic and callous. However, some DMV services are now available by mail or via the Internet, making some of this humor somewhat irrelevant to the actual operation of many departments.
In the popular American television show The Simpsons, Patty and Selma (Marge Simpson's sisters) work at the DMV.