Title: An act relating to renewal of driver's licenses and identicards by alternative means.

Sponsors: Senate Committee on Highways & Transportation (originally sponsored by Senators Finkbeiner, Haugen, Horn and Shin; by request of Department of Licensing).

Brief Summary of Engrossed Substitute Bill

• Allows individuals to renew their driver's license or identicard via mail, electronic commerce or other electronic means, under certain circumstances.

• Defines "electronic commerce" to include transactions conducted over the Internet, by telephone or by other electronic means.

Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 24 members: Representatives Murray, Chair; Rockefeller, Vice Chair; G. Simpson, Vice Chair; Jarrett, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Armstrong, Bailey, Campbell, Clibborn, Cooper, Dickerson, Hankins, Hatfield, Hudgins, Kristiansen, Lovick, Mielke, Nixon, Rodne, Romero, Schindler, Shabro, Wallace, Wood and Woods.

Individuals renewing their driver's license or identicard must present their application to the Department of Licensing (DOL) in person. The exception to this requirement is that a driver's license may be extended or renewed by mail when the applicant is living out of the state at the time the license expires. A $5 fee is assessed on mail-in renewals

"Electronic commerce" is defined as including transactions conducted over the Internet, by telephone or by other electronic means.

A driver's license or indenticard may be renewed by mail, electronic commerce or other electronic means, if the DOL establishes rules to allow these alternative renewal methods. A driver or identicard holder would be limited to one alternative renewal before having to renew in person and an identicard holder could only renew through an alternative method if his or her existing identicard includes a photograph.

A person whose license has expired, or will expire, while he or she is living outside the state may apply for renewal by electronic commerce, regardless of whether the applicant renewed his or her driver's license by mail or electronic commerce when it last expired, if the DOL establishes rules to permit such renewal by mail.

Persons applying to renew an instruction permit, an agricultural driving permit, or a commercial driver license must submit their applications to the DOL in person.

The DOL is required to establish procedures to ensure that individuals renewing by mail or electronic commerce would be given the opportunity to register to vote. The DOL's authority to issue drivers' licenses and indenticards by alternative methods is subject to funding being provided by June 30, 2004 in the omnibus transportation appropriations act. The DOL is authorized to accept credit card payment for drivers' licenses and indenticards.

The $5 fee for mail-in renewals and the exam required of individuals returning to the state who have renewed by mail are both eliminated.

Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: The Department of Licensing is the face of the state to most citizens. It is the agency that people around the state interact with most often. On-line license tab renewals has been very popular and extending that service to driver license and identicard renewals will help to enhance the perception of the customer-orientation of government.

Persons Testifying: Senator Finkbeiner, prime sponsor; Andrew Johnsen, Office of Financial Management; and Fred Stephens and Denise Movius, Department of Licensing.