Lawmakers look to revamp the way Oklahomans get driver’s licenses, car tags and other state documents
A year from now, if all goes to plan, Oklahomans will no longer go to a tag agent or the Department of Public Service for a driver’s license or a car tag.
They’ll go to something called Service Oklahoma.
To be clear, tag agents are not going away, and neither are the state’s approximately 250 tag agencies. They are not being taken over by the state and — unique to Oklahoma — will continue as private businesses.
But they will be subject to more state oversight and more state support, lawmakers say, and eventually will provide more than car tags and registrations and driver’s licenses. The goal is to create a network of locations able to provide all sorts of official documents, perhaps including death and birth certificates, all under the banner of Service Oklahoma, a new state government entity created by legislation now advancing in the Oklahoma House and Senate.
“We have a lot of services that could be offered besides driver’s license and title and tags,” said state Rep. Dell Kerbs, R-Shawnee, and author of House Bill 3419, one of the two reorganization bills. “We need one location for that, not five, six, seven different agencies.”
HB 3419 and Senate Bill 1605, by Sen. Chuck Hall, R-Perry, are basically the same bill on more or less parallel tracks, although only one of them will carry the final version of the Service Oklahoma legislation to the governor’s office.
The plan is to move the functions of the Oklahoma Tax Commission and the Department of Public Services that currently handle vehicle licensing and driver’s licenses to a single division within the Office of Management and Enterprise Services. The reorganization involves more than 300 state employees, all of whom will be offered positions within Service Oklahoma.
As mentioned, tag agents will remain independent contractors, although their formal title will change from motor vehicle agent to licensed operator.
Initially, at least, licensed operators will do about the same things they do now.
The situation will be much the same with driving tests. Those will be given from the existing locations, except as a part of Service Oklahoma instead of DPS.
Provided the legislation is passed and signed into law this session, the current DPS functions will move to Service Oklahoma on Nov. 1 and the Tax Commission piece on Jan. 1, 2023.
Kerbs said the goal is to create a single back-office operation for the licensed operators that is more efficient for all concerned.
“There’s more structure for the tag agents — the licensed operators — and more support on the back side,” he said.
The reorganization includes an oversight board and an operators advisory board, both of which would be involved in setting service standards.
The proposed arrangement is, to some extent, a response to an effort a few years ago to reduce the number of tag agents or eliminate them altogether in favor of on-line services and state employees.
“A study was done, and it showed that our tag agents were 85% more efficient delivering services than the state was,” Kerbs said. “They’re not going anywhere. … It really is a good public-private partnership. We can run the back-of-house, but we want them to be our front-line staff.”
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Photos: Jim Inhofe announces retirement. A look back at his career
Jim Inhofe
State Sen. Jim Inhofe’s expression reflects the hopelessness of his cause on Nov. 5, 1974, as Tulsan John Hulburt shows him some early returns on the governor’s race. The Tulsa Republican was beaten by Democrat David Boren.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe is shown with his wife, Kay, and family on the night he won his first term as Tulsa mayor, April 4, 1978. Inhofe was mayor from 1978-1984.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe is shown with his wife, Kay, on the night he won his first term as Tulsa mayor, April 4, 1978. Inhofe was mayor from 1978-1984
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. David Boren and Tulsa Mayor Jim Inhofe speak to honoree Alfred E. Aaronson and his wife, Mrs. Aaronson, during a dinner on March 25, 1979.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe on Nov. 4, 1986, when he won his first congressional seat for the 1st District.
Jim Inhofe
Kansas U.S. Sen. Bob Dole (right) speaks at an August 1994 press conference at the BOk Tower in Tulsa while Jim Inhofe (center) and Sen. Don Nickles (left) watch.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe with actor Charlton Heston at a fundraiser for Inhofe’s Senate campaign. Heston spoke at St. Bernard Catholic Church on Sept. 5, 1994.
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe gets his receipt from Fran Roach after filing for office at the Oklahoma Capitol in Oklahoma City on July 8, 1996.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe speaks at the Republican watch party in Oklahoma City on Nov. 5, 1996.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe speaks as his wife, Kay, stands beside him at the Republican watch party in Oklahoma City on Nov. 5, 1996.
Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe and Frank Keating pose for a photograph at the Oklahoma Hall of Fame ceremony on Nov. 22, 1996. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
Maggie Inhofe is held by Sen Jim Inhofe at his headquarters in Tulsa. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe listens to a panel discussing issues involving rural health care at St. John Medical Center’s Health Plaza on Aug. 31, 1999. TOM GILBERT/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Senate Armed Service Committee Chairman Sen. John Warner, R-Va., right, meets with Navy Secretary Richard Danzig, left, and committee member Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla. on Capitol Hill Tuesday Oct. 19, 1999 prior to a hearing of the committee to discuss the Navy’s bombing of the Puerto Rico island of Vieques. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
Jim Inhofe
Senator James (Jim) Inhofe presents the Purple Heart to Shannon Mathews on Monday, June 25, 2001. Matthews was injured on October 9, 1994 in PortAuPrince during operation Uphold Democracy. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe hugs Mary E. Peters, director of the U.S. Department of Transportation, after a press conference at the collapsed Interstate -40 bridge near Webbers Falls on Monday, June 10, 2002. Tulsa World File photo
Inhofe asks for commitment to Tar Creek
In this file photo, Picher resident and city council member Phillip Johnson speaks to U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe after a meeting he held with residents in December 2003 in Miami, Oklahoma to discuss the Tar Creek superfund site. Inhofe asked EPA administrator nominee Lisa Jackson Wednesday for a public commitment Wednesday to finish the Tar Creek buyouts and an ultimate cleanup of the huge Superfund site. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
President Bush, Steve Largent, center, and James Inhofe, R-Okla., left, laugh during a Steve Largent for Governor and James Inhofe for Senate Luncheon Thursday, Aug. 29, 2002, in Oklahoma City, Okla. A vacationing Bush began wrapping up his monthlong respite from the White House with money trips to Oklahoma and Arkansas, where he also will talk about education at a back-to-school event. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe speaks about the now approved $10 million CrossTimbers Resort on Skiatook Lake while at a special ceremony at Tallchief Cove on Skiatook Lake on October 7, 2002. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla. speaks during the dedication ceremony of the $11.95 million Composite Support Complex of the 138th Fighter Wing near Tulsa International Airport (TIA). The 138th Fighter Wing dedicated its new Composite Support Complex on Saturday March 8, 2003. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
Mike Brown, right, director Federal Emergency Management Agency, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., second from right, and Sen. Don Nickles, R-Okla., rear left in blue, survey a tornado-damaged neighborhood Saturday, May 10, 2003, in Moore, Okla. President Bush issued a disaster declaration for the entire state of Oklahoma on Saturday after a second tornado in as many days hit Oklahoma City late Friday night. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Haderthauer)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, far left, holds a sign up as Sen. Olympia Snow, R-Maine, center, and Sen. James Inhofe, R- Okla., right, walk into the Senate Chamber on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2003 in Washington. The Senate is in session for an all night debate on President Bush’s blocked judicial nominations. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Jim Inhofe
Protester Gloria Garner, a lifetime resident of Picher holds a sign up to U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe after a meeting he held with residents in Miami, Oklahoma on Dec. 19, 2003, to discuss the Tar Creek superfund site.Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., speaks to several thousand people who showed up to a Pro America Rally today. The rally was held at LaFortune Stadium at Memorial High School. May 23, 2004. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe greet onlookers during the AEP-PSO 2004 Christmas Parade of Lights in downtown Tulsa on Dec. 11, 2004. JOHN CLANTON/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Gen. James Jones Jr., commander of U.S. European Command and supreme allied commander, Europe, left, talks with Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, March 7, 2006, prior to the committee’s hearing on the Defense Department’s fiscal 2007 budget for military operational requirements. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke)
Jim Inhofe
Arrival of President George W. Bush at Vance Air Force Base Saturday morning, Saturday, May 6, 2006. He waves to people behind a barrier as he walks to board Marine One helicopter. Following Bush are US Sen. Jim Inhofe and Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin. He traveled by helicopter to Stillwater where he delivered an address at graduation ceremony at Oklahoma State University. JIM BECKEL/The Oklahoman
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., right, has lunch with U.S. military personnel in Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone in Iraq on Sunday, June 11, 2006. (AP Photo/Mohammed Jalil, Pool)
Jim Inhofe
NATO’s top commander, U.S. Gen. James L. Jones, right, listens to U.S. Sen. James Inhofe, a Republican from Oklahoma, before a press conference at the main US military base in Bagram, Afghanistan, Saturday, Oct 28, 2006. NATO’s top commander said Taliban fighters are using civilians as human shields and that in the heat of battle it can be difficult to separate the two. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., ranking Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, holds up a document while questioning former Vice President Al Gore during the committee’s hearing on global climate change, Wednesday, March 21, 2007, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Senator James Inhofe and Major General Peter Vangjel, Fort Sill commanding general, looking at a model of the XM-1203 Non-Line-of-Sight Cannon during dedication ceremonies for the BAE Systems Initial Facility building at the Fort Sill Industrial Park in Elgin, Okla. Monday, August 25, 2008. PAUL B. SOUTHERLAND/The Oklahoman
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Senate candidates Andrew Rice and Jim Inhofe chat at their podiums before the beginning of the debate at the KJRH studios in Tulsa, Okla. October 7, 2008. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., waits with a number of his grandchildren to be introduced at a Republican election night watch party in Oklahoma City, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., flanked by Sen. David Vitter, R-La., left, and Rep. John Fleming, D-La., speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 11, 2009, to discuss the economy. (AP Photo/Harry Hamburg)
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe is greeted by Josh Douglas and his daughter Kimmie Douglas, 8, as the senator rides horseback during the Broken Arrow Christmas Parade, on Saturday, Dec. 4, 2010. Tulsa World File photo
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., at microphone, joined by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., right, and Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., center, talks to reporters about federal regulation of greenhouse gases and soaring gas prices, Tuesday, March 15, 2011, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., the ranking Republican Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, greets EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 12, 2011, prior to the committee’s hearing entitled, “Review of the Nuclear Emergency in Japan and Implications for the U.S.” (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Jim Inhofe
Anita Perry and her husband Republican Presidential candidate Gov. Rick Perry of Texas listen as Senator Jim Inhofe endorses him at the Tulsa Press Club August 29, 2011. MIKE SIMONS/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., speaks to Jane Horton, widow of U.S. Army Spc. Christopher D. Horton, 26, of Collinsville, Okla., who died while serving in Afghanistan, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2011, during the burial services at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., center, and Rep. John Mica, R- Fla., left, listen as Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., right, speaks during the first meeting of the House and Senate conference on the transportation bill, Tuesday, May 8, 2012, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, left, R-Okla., greets Oklahoma state Rep. Mike Jackson, right, R-Enid, in Waukomis, Okla, Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012. Inhofe was in Waukomis to speak against the expansion of the Clean Water Act to authority over wet areas on private land.(AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Jim Inhofe
United States Senator Jim Inhofe speaks during a news conference about the I-44 Riverside Drive to Yale Avenue widening project Oct. 30, 2012. MIKE SIMONS/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, questions Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013, during the committee’s hearing about the Pentagon’s role in responding to the attack last year on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, where the ambassador and three other Americans were killed. The committee’s ranking Republican Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla. listens at left. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Jim Inhofe
In this July 8, 2014, file photo, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Jim Inhofe
Vice President Joe Biden administers the Senate oath to Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla. during a ceremonial re-enactment swearing-in ceremony, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015, in the Old Senate Chamber of Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., is surrounded by reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015. Following the success of the GOP in the midterm elections, the 80-year-old Republican from the oil-producing state of Oklahoma is the new chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe tosses a snowball in Senate on Feb. 26, 2015. C-SPAN video screengrab
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., speaks with Bill John Baker (right), Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, before a press conference held on the on-ramp to highway 169 at east 56th street north in Tulsa on Friday, June 26, 2015. Inhofe and local business leaders and officials talked about the importance of continued federal funding for improved highway safety in Oklahoma and a U.S. 169 widening and bridge project that was awarded in April and is designed to replace eight bridges, all built in 1960-1961, with six of them listed as structurally deficient. JOHN CLANTON/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Pam Pollard, chairwoman of the Oklahoma Republican Party, is at the microphone as the state’s delegation casts its votes at the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. To the right of Pollard are Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla. RANDY KREHBIEL/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., joined by, from left, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., Bonnie Lautenberg, widow of the late New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg, Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., discusses bipartisan legislation to improve the federal regulation of chemicals and toxic substances, Thursday May 19, 2016, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Jim Inhofe
Performing the duties of the Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Ok., left, shakes hands with Navy Adm. Philip Davidson, right, after a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 17, 2018. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Jim Inhofe
County Commissioner Karen Keith(left), City Councilor Phil Lakin and Senator Jim Inhofe speak on the Midland Valley Bridge as traffic passes below on the newly opened Riverside Drive Sept. 10, 2018. MIKE SIMONS/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe makes remarks at the American Airlines maintenance facility, 3800 North Mingo Road, in Tulsa, Okla., on Friday, October 26, 2018. Inhofe visited the plant to tout a recent bill that will strengthen the aviation workforce. MATT BARNARD/Tulsa World File
Jim Inhofe
Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee speaks to reporters on his way to his office, as the Senate takes up a House-passed bill that would pay for President Donald Trump’s border wall and avert a partial government shutdown, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, Dec. 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Jim Inhofe
Vietnam War veteran John Marler (center) accepts an Army commendation medal with valor from Chris Medrano (left), a senior vice commandant from the Marine Corps League, and U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (right) at Grace Living Center, 711 N. Fifth St., in Jenks, Okla., on Thursday, March 21, 2019. MATT BARNARD/Tulsa World
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe shakes hands with military veterans after presenting an award to Vietnam War veteran John Marler at Grace Living Center, 711 N. Fifth St., in Jenks, Okla., on Thursday, March 21, 2019. MATT BARNARD/Tulsa World
Republican Watch Party
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe makes remarks at a Republican Party watch party at the Stoney Creek Hotel and Conference Center in Broken Arrow on Tuesday.
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., center, walks on Capitol Hill, Monday, Jan. 27, 2020, in Washington, before the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. (AP Photo/ Jacquelyn Martin)
Jim Inhofe
Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe talks to media while waiting for President Donald Trump at Tulsa International Airport in Tulsa on Saturday, June 20, 2020.IAN MAULE/Tulsa World
Biden and Inhofe
President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with lawmakers on investments in infrastructure, in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021, in Washington. From left, Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., Vice President Kamala Harris, Biden, Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Jim Inhofe
Chairman Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla, arrives as Kenneth Braithwaite, nominated to be Secretary of the Navy, Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr., nominated for reappointment to Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force and James Anderson, nominated to be Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy prepare to testify before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, May 7, 2020. (Kevin Dietsch/Pool via AP)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., hugs President Donald Trump as he arrives at Tulsa International Airport on Saturday, June 20, 2020, in Tulsa, Okla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Jim Inhofe
Oklahoma politicians listen in the audience as President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the BOK Center, Saturday, June 20, 2020, in Tulsa, Okla. Clockwise from left with mask are Sen. James Lankford, Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, Sen. Jim Inhofe, Gov. Kevin Stitt, and First Lady Sarah Stitt. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Jim Inhofe
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, right, meets with Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2020, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)
Jim Inhofe
Vice President Mike Pence, right, administers the oath of office to Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., as his daughter Molly Rapert, looks on during a reenactment ceremony in the Old Senate Chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021. (Kevin Dietsch/Pool via AP)
Jim Inhofe
From left, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., and Ranking Member Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., speak before a Senate Armed Services budget hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
Jim Inhofe
Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Okla., center, accompanied by Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, left, and Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, speaks during the Senate Armed Services and Senate Foreign Relations GOP news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2022. ( AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Jim Inhofe
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe for years has fought for the infrastructure needs of Tulsa. He requested $20 million in federal appropriations to replace Tulsa International Airport’s nearly 60-year-old air traffic control tower. He also asked for $5 million to build a new federal inspection service facility at the airport.
Inhofe also is continuing to push for federal action on the aged and troubled levees that protect Tulsa from flooding. And he continues to fight for critical repairs and improvements to the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System, a vital link to world commerce for northeastern Oklahoma.
Infrastructure has recently been a hot topic in Washington, but it’s been Inhofe’s purpose throughout his federal political career.
Click here to read a Tulsa World editorial.
March 2019: Get to know Sen. James Inhofe
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