There was a time in Johnson County when getting a license tag for a vehicle, even just renewing a tag, was a time-consuming, frustrating nightmare.

Not anymore.

With technological advances and a $40,000 investment, the once dreaded trip to the DMV has been transformed. People now can make “reservations” by going online to the DMV’s website (www.dmv.org) or stopping by one of the two county offices and plugging in a cell phone number.

As their place in the virtual line moves forward, the person receives a text message, followed by updates letting them know how much time they have before their number is called.

If they are stuck in traffic or have to cancel or postpone their place in line, people can respond to the text and get a new place in line.

The system has been so successful that other DMVs across the country are calling Johnson County officials wanting information on how to initiate the same system.

“We’ve received a lot of positive feedback, a lot of one-on-one customer comments either through e-mail or they have called to tell us they really like the system,” said Amy Meeker-Berg, chief deputy treasurer.

Typical is the kind of praise lauded by one woman, who asked not to be identified, about her recent visit to the DMV.

“The sun has moved and the earth has moved,” she said. “I was amazingly shocked. I was there the last day of the month, I had to be at work at 1 and people told me I needed to be there when they opened, so I took a book.

“I was out in 10 minutes. I called (the DMV) and told them, ‘You have fixed it. It has been broken for 50 years, as long as there have been wheels on cars, it has been broken, and you have fixed it.’ Praising is not enough.”

Meeker-Berg said the entire system, designed and implemented in 2008, was based on taxpayers not having to wait inside the office.

“It’s the ability to have that freedom to come and go and to more closely match up with the time we’re ready to serve them,” she said. “Even during those peak business times when the wait time averages are higher; it just allows them that freedom, which really is priceless to be able to set your own schedule and not be a captive taxpayer.”

Meeker-Berg said the idea was based on restaurant-buzzer technology.

“But with a half-million taxpayers, that doesn’t even give you enough freedom to get very far from the restaurant,” she said. “We wanted to go a step further. Most taxpayers have a cell phone and they can utilize that to keep more aware of what’s going on as far as the wait time and show up when they need to.”

Johnson County teamed up with QLess, a California-based company that came up with a line management system for amusement parks, to develop a workable solution for the DMV.

Then the partnership went a step further to develop a way for taxpayers to make their appointments online.

“There was no model to base that off of,” Meeker-Berg said. “We had a good partnership with our vendor and they were willing to take a chance and take their product and develop it a little further to meet our needs.”

Of the $40,000 spent to implement the system, $1,700 went to the vendor and the rest was spent on equipment, which included touch-screen monitors, ticket dispensers, display monitors and a cabling system.

Meeker-Berg said it was money well-spent. So do others. Because of the efforts, Johnson County has received three awards: the 2010 NACo Achievement Award, the PTI 2009-2010 Technology Solutions Award, and the GFOA 2010 Award for Excellence in eGovernment and Technology.

And the treasurer’s office is trying to make life even better for taxpayers going to the DMV, Meeker-Berg said.

“We’re working in conjunction with the state, which is implementing a new system that will replace the current motor vehicle and driver’s licenses systems,” she said. “Once that implementation goes in we’re really working toward more of a self-service concept for renewal registrations.”

Residents can already renew car registrations by mail. Soon they will be able to do it on their own at the DMV office.

“People will be able to walk in and process themselves those renewal registrations, those transactions that may not be as complicated as like titling a new vehicle; just trying to pay for your renewal or get your decal or sticker.”

Online likely is next.

“There are some constraints around that,” Meeker-Berg said. “Some of it has to do with the rules and regulations set forth by the state. Some has to do with insurance verification. There are quite a few differences with why you could or couldn’t do it online, but that capability is out there.

“The law and some of the processes just have to catch up to technology.”

Posted April 20, 2011