The DMV Blog

State By State: Differences In How States Handle Driver’s License Renewals

Mon, 8/6/2018 - 3:43 pm by Andrew Perez

Depending on where you live, renewing your driver’s license can involve online renewals every four years, in person renewals every 10 years, and endless other combinations of available services and policies. With such variety in the options for driver’s license renewals, we wanted to see a state-by-state comparison to understand the implications of moving and to assess how each state handles this essential DMV function. Using information that we pulled from the state information pages on DMV.com, here are the compiled results on the differences between each state’s driver’s license renewals. How Can You Renew Your Driver’s License? The available driver’s license renewal methods are not the same across the country. Whereas some states have embraced digital options — including online renewals — other states have implemented alternate solutions such as renew by mail. Below, we’ve categorized each state’s driver’s … Continued

Washington State Passes New Distracted Driving Law That Bans Holding a Cellphone While Driving

Wed, 8/1/2018 - 10:22 pm by Kirsten Rincon

A new Washington State distracted driving law bans the use of handheld devices while behind the wheel, even if stopped at a red light. The new law goes into effect on July 23, 2017 and will be considered a primary offense that can be put on a driver’s permanent driving record. “I think it’s a good move personally because cellphones are a big part of our lives and everyone feels the need to be connected,” said District 6 Trooper Camron Iverson. “The current law doesn’t address the issue of other social applications, communication on cell phones go way beyond talking and texting.” Governor Jay Inslee signed the measure into law in May but vetoed a section that had the distracted driving rule taking effect in 2019 in order to help enforce the new law sooner. Law enforcement officials are gearing … Continued

Tesla a Threat to GM?

Tue, 7/31/2018 - 9:13 pm by Kirsten Rincon

  Tesla has been regarded as a small, albeit innovative company ever since it was founded in 2003, that didn’t have the potential to become a serious threat to the larger companies that have already established themselves in the global market. The reason why the major American car makers haven’t taken Tesla too seriously is that this electric vehicle manufacturer has had a lot of financial difficulties and was having trouble hitting production targets, which has hurt its reputation quite a bit. Tesla’s business model, which is quite unusual for an automotive company, along with the fact that they sell expensive, luxury vehicles in a time when the economy is in a major crisis, are additional reasons why their competitors have felt comfortable and not the least bit threatened. However, with the latest news regarding the surge of Tesla shares, … Continued

Tougher Fuel-Efficiency Standards for Trucks Proposed in the U.S.

Mon, 7/30/2018 - 9:48 pm by Kirsten Rincon

The U.S. Government has been putting a lot of effort into combating global warming and improving air quality in recent years. One of the key parts of those efforts is reducing carbon emissions from motor vehicles, since transportation is the largest source of air pollution in the country. That is why fuel economy standards are becoming increasingly tougher, mandating automakers to build more efficient vehicles with lower greenhouse gas emission levels. As a result, new cars sold today are much more fuel-efficient than they used to be a couple of years ago, which can not be said about heavy-duty vehicles, though. They have not been affected by the tightening fuel economy regulations as much as passenger cars up until now, but that’s about to change, with the Obama administration recently proposing tougher standards for trucks, mandating a 24-percent reduction of … Continued

Crude Oil Transportation Regulations Need to Get Much Tougher

Mon, 7/30/2018 - 9:22 pm by Kirsten Rincon

In the past few months, there has been a lot of talk about oil transport safety, prompted by a series of accidents involving derailed trains while carrying crude oil, many of which resulted in dozens of fatalities. These accidents have raised some questions about oil transportation regulations, with many lawmakers suggesting that they need to be far stricter, especially when it comes to transport by rail, since safety risks involved in pipeline transport and transport via road are much lower. In May, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a safety alert for oil trains, mandating railroads to notify state emergency responders whenever they are about to transport oil through their states. Prior to that, the government ordered all railroads to conduct tests of crude oil before transport by train, in order to determine the risk of explosion or fire during … Continued

The Results of the 2015 State DMV Websites Rankings by DMV.com

Sun, 7/29/2018 - 5:40 pm by DMV Admin

The Washington DMV has the best state DMV website in the country with a total of 95 points. It is followed by New York with 94 points, Virginia (93), Wisconsin (92), Maryland (90), Indiana (89), Massachusetts (86), New Mexico (85), Arizona (84), with California rounding out the Top Ten State DMV Websites list, with a total of 83 points. The following are the detailed scores for each of the state DMV websites. Four main categories have been taken into consideration: Design, usability, services, and website content. For more details on the 2015 State DMV Website Rankings go here. Rankings State Website D U S C Overall Score 1 Washington DOL www.dol.wa.gov 19 18 38 20 95 details 2 New York DMV dmv.ny.gov 20 16 38 20 94 details 3 Virginia DMV www.dmv.state.va.us 18 20 35 20 93 details 4 Wisconsin … Continued

The Top 31-41 State DMV Websites in America

Sun, 7/29/2018 - 5:38 pm by DMV Admin

DMV.com has ranked and reviewed every DMV agency website to find the best of class for its 2015 State DMV Website Rankings. All the websites were graded using a comprehensive scorecard that evaluated the design, usability, content and online services. These websites ranked #31 to #41 in government motor vehicle and licensing websites. #31 New Jersey D U S C Score 6 11 26 20 63 The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission website is not mobile responsive and therefore provides a poor user experience if using a tablet or mobile device. The website does however, include a link to a list of online services directly from the homepage and offers simple step by step instructions for services that are not provided online. #32 Louisiana D U S C Score 9 20 23 11 63 The Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles … Continued

The Top 21-30 State DMV Websites in America

Sun, 7/29/2018 - 5:36 pm by DMV Admin

DMV.com has ranked and reviewed every DMV agency website to find the best of class for its 2015 State DMV Website Rankings. All the websites were graded using a comprehensive scorecard that evaluated the design, usability, content and online services. These websites ranked #21 to #30 in government motor vehicle and licensing websites. #21 Rhode Island D U S C Score 11 16 24 20 71 The Rhode Island DMV is not mobile friendly, resulting in a poor user experience if using a tablet or mobile device. Online services are clearly offered in the main navigation and FAQs are available from the homepage. A number of online services have been made available and provides all the necessary forms if a trip to the DMV is required. #22 Ohio D U S C Score 10 17 27 16 70 The Ohio … Continued

The Top 11-20 State DMV Websites in America

Sun, 7/29/2018 - 5:35 pm by DMV Admin

DMV.com has ranked and reviewed every DMV agency website to find the best of class for its 2015 State DMV Website Rankings. All the websites were graded using a comprehensive scorecard that evaluated the design, usability, content and online services. These websites ranked #11 to #20 in government motor vehicle and licensing websites. #11 Nevada D U S C Score 10 20 32 20 82 The Nevada DMV website has logical menus with a number of online services in the main navigation. Online forms are easily understandable and identify required fields. Although the website looks good on a desktop the site is not tablet or mobile responsive. Appointments can also only be made for driving skills tests. #12 North Carolina D U S C Score 20 18 23 20 81 The North Carolina DOT website’s responsive design allows users to … Continued

Worst ten state DMV websites

Sun, 7/29/2018 - 5:33 pm by DMV Admin

DMV.com has ranked and reviewed every DMV agency website to find the best of class for its 2015 State DMV Website Rankings. All the websites were graded using a comprehensive scorecard that evaluated the design, usability, content and online services. These websites ranked #42 to #51 in government motor vehicle and licensing websites. #42 Montana D U S C Score 17 7 15 14 53 The Montana Department of Justice website is mobile responsive and provides an adequate user experience for those using a tablet or mobile device. The Montana DOJ website lost the majority of points in the usability and services category. Few of the online services DMV.com was looking for while ranking the top state DMV websites were offered by the Montana DOJ website and the majority of menu options appear below the fold while the FAQ section … Continued