A self-service kiosk at the new county complex will soon enable DeKalb County residents to renew drivers licenses and get a photo ID at the county complex, and the county clerk has signed a contract to allow him to produce duplicate titles in the office.
County Clerk Mike Clayborn said at last week’s county commission meeting that his two-year effort to obtain a contract with the state to print duplicate titles in his office has come to fruition.
Clayborn said state officials contacted him recently with a proposal for a contract to print duplicate titles, and that the plan includes the possibility of new titles being printed in house in the future.
“They wanted to include in my contract that I would do new titles, which incurs a whole lot more paperwork,” Clayborn said. “I told them to go ahead and include it because I don't have to just automatically go into doing them.”
He said the duplicate-title program will give his office the opportunity to work the bugs out of the system before new titles, which involve significantly more paperwork, are printed.
“We can kind of feel our way through the duplicates, learn how to do them and then step up, but when we step up, it’s going to require more people. I'll need your backing to do that,” Clayborn told the commission. “With the duplicates, we can handle that with what we've got, but if we decide we want to do new titles, you've got to consider that you'll have individuals coming in. I don't know how many a day we'll do, but it'll be several. Then you have all your dealerships and they might bring in a week's work in one day.”
He said there is no rush to begin printing new titles as far as the contract is concerned.
“We don't have to go right into it. It’s not something we've got to do in the next six months, or next year, or the next two years,” he said.
Clayborn stressed that when the program is implemented the wait for a new title will be greatly decreased.
“ If you come in and do your title work, in three days you'll have a title instead of waiting two weeks.”
The duplicate-title printing service should be available by the first of the year.
Meanwhile, Clayborn announced that the county has reached an agreement with the Tennessee Department of Safety to install a self-service kiosk in the county complex to produce photo IDs and driver license renewals.
“All you've got to do is go in with a credit card,” Clayborn said. “You'll put in your information. You'll swipe your card. It'll give you a receipt and they'll send you a renewal on your driver's license and make you a Tennessee ID.”
A temporary driver's license, with a photo, will be printed at the kiosk.
Permanent licenses and ID cards will not be printed at the kiosk due to security reasons.
The temporary paperwork will be valid for two weeks.
The kiosk will use face recognition software to compare existing drivers' license photos with the person standing at the kiosk to verify that paperwork is being issued to the correct person.
Mayor Mike Foster said the kiosk will not only save driving time for residents, it should streamline the process as well.
“It'll save you from having to drive to McMinnville or Cookeville to get a drivers license renewal or to go and get a photo ID,” said the mayor. “You punch in the numbers and the machine talks to you. It tells you what you need to do. It takes a picture and then gives you a temporary drivers license and when they check all the details, then they send you the license.”