2023 Winners

International and Region 2 Recognition

Florida Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles

Florida Licensing on Wheels (FLOW) Team

Hurricane Ian directly impacted the West Coast of the Florida peninsula disrupting the normal way of life for thousands of Floridians on September 27, 2022. In response, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) deployed 8 of their 14, Florida Licensing on Wheels (FLOW) mobile units to Charlotte, Lee, Sarasota, Collier and Orange Counties, to provide residents with no-fee replacement driver licenses, identification cards, and titles. FLOW units began their operation on October 3, 2022 – November 8, 2022, providing services at key Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC) in each county, working 7 days a week that went late into the evening assisting not only those impacted by storm but also those volunteering to rebuild the community. The FLOW played an intricate part in providing motorist and driver services while the local brick and mortar offices assessed the damages left in the wake of Hurricane Ian. FLOW’s processed over 2,055 Driver License transactions to include renewals, replacements, and temporary permits as well over 1,028 Motor Vehicle transactions that included registration and title renewals and replacements.

Region 1 Recognitions

Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles

Delaware DMV - Kindness Matters Initiative

Like many of its counterparts, the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles continues to search for new and creative ways to boost employee morale. The Kindness Matters Initiative grew from a desire to spread positivity and kindness within the Division. The goal initially was to identify real and tangible strategies to combat negativity, to encourage staff to speak kindly, listen attentively, and act compassionately when interacting with colleagues and customers. The Kindness Matters Committee organizes employee appreciation luncheons, and quarterly awards for those who go above and beyond, publishes a weekly motivational e-newsletter, coordinates other team-building events throughout the year, and may even bake a dessert or two, but what began as an internal initiative quickly developed into something even more special. In partnership with the Delaware Department of Transportation, the committee donated non-perishable food items to the Food Bank of Delaware, purchased pajamas for children ages infants to 17 years old for the Enzo’s Pajama Drive, donated backpacks and school supplies in August of 2022 alongside the Delaware State Police for local school children in need, and volunteered to collect tents, camping supplies, sleeping bags, and other items left behind amid massive piles of trash after the 4-day Firefly Music Festival in September of 2022 so Code Purple Delaware could clean and repurpose for the homeless community in Delaware.

District of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles

DC DMV Supports Annual Senior Fest Event

On May 25, 2022, DC DMV representatives participated in the District of Columbia's Senior Fest event where they answered attendees DMV related questions and distributed free giveaway items, including DC DMV branded back packs, water bottles, flashlights and more. The Senior Fest is an annual free event celebrating DC's senior population. Attendees enjoy socializing with each other as they experience live entertainment, music, health events, board games and guest speakers, including Mayor Muriel Bowser. The event is coordinated by DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) and DC Department of Aging and Community Living (DACL). Senior Fest offers DC DMV the opportunity to engage with hundreds of senior residents. In addition to providing giveaways to attendees, DC DMV representatives used an iPad onsite to provide seniors with tutorials on how to complete numerous online transactions, including vehicle registration renewals, ticket services, identification card renewals, and much more.

Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration

CDL Outreach

In early 2022, MDOT MVA met with partners from the Maryland Motor Truck Association (MMTA) and members of the School Bus programs representing jurisdictions across Maryland to develop ways to help these groups successfully emerge from the pandemic. The objective was clear: more drivers were needed on the road and MDOT MVA played a crucial part in helping to ensure potential CDL candidates were tested, accredited and road ready. However, broader outreach and action were needed to work to attract more people to apply for a CDL. MDOT MVA planned two separate events, one in February 2022 for those interested in a CDL with School Bus accreditation and another in March for potential CDL candidates. In all more than 88 potential candidates tested during the February bus event. Forty-two percent of those that took the driver’s skills test passed. Thirty-four percent of those taking the written test passed. With a successful February event, MDOT MVA partnered with MMTA for the March event. Representatives from MMTA spoke about the skills needed for the role and how to safely share the road with commercial vehicles. Professional CDL holders from several state agencies and private companies were onsite to allow interested drivers to ask questions and give interested attendees a real feel for what it is like to drive a truck. Interested applicants were given information on potential employment opportunities. It is estimated that more than 50 interested drivers attended to learn more about becoming a truck driver. Overall, MDOT MVA granted 13,395 new Commercial Driver’s Licenses to customers in 2022. That's an increase of 35 percent compared to 2021. Additionally, of those new 2022 CDL drivers, 1,973 of them opted to get Bus Driver Accreditation as compared to 1,386 in 2021 an increase of 42%.

Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles

Making Our Most Vulnerable Visible: State Identification for the Homeless

Working with various state departments, the RI DMV operates a free waiver program for issuing the homeless population state IDs. This service benefits the homeless population by cutting through the red tape of bureaucracy and granting them identification cards at no cost to them, which will give them the opportunity to break the cycle of homelessness by making them eligible to apply for government benefits and services that they otherwise would not be able to receive. Not having identification makes this vulnerable population almost invisible and the mounting challenges that arise without possessing official identification make it virtually impossible to secure long term assistance for housing, health services, mental health services, substance abuse services, and even gainful employment. By going out into the community where the homeless are, compassionately and conveniently meeting them where they’re at, working alongside their trusted advocates and case workers, and making the process easier by helping them through the overwhelming task of obtaining identity documents, the RI DMV staff literally gives these members of the community another shot at life.

Region 2 Recognitions

Arkansas Office of Driver Services

Community Outreach Program

It can be difficult to get a job, or even interview, without a driver license. Without employment, formerly incarcerated individuals may be more likely to return to prison, as reflected by Arkansas’ 56% recidivism rate. To address this problem, the Arkansas Office of Driver Services (ODS) began making monthly visits to prisons, drug courts, probation and parole offices, and rehabilitation centers across the state to provide necessary resources and assist disadvantaged individuals with obtaining or reinstating driving privileges. ODS Hearing Officers also attended Re-Entry, Unsheltered Outreach, and Rights After Wrongs, community events that help former inmates restart their lives through free services including assistance and legal consolations. Some people have never been licensed but are a part of the re-entry program and have completed all reinstatement requirements except paying the reinstatement fees. In these cases, ODS cooperates with the Arkansas State Police to allow the customer to take the written and skills exams. This outreach allows the customer to obtain a driver’s license with waived fees, which is a critical part of the program. Between October 1, 2021 and September 30, 2022, ODS has waived $284,298 in reinstatement fees. This program has a major impact in people’s lives, allowing them to seek employment and improve their lives post incarceration.

Georgia Department of Driver Services

Soles for Souls

Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) Commissioner Spencer R. Moore is a champion of community service. At the Commissioner’s direction, GA DDS regularly supports our State’s Charitable Contributions Program (SCCP) as well as various individual philanthropic efforts. Our Agency has a reputation for giving back to the community and recently partnered with the United Way to collect 300 pairs of new and gently used shoes for school-aged children in need for the beginning of the school year. The DDS Human Resources (HR) Division managed the project and titled it DDS Soles For Souls. Not having any shoes can contribute to children not attending school. Millions of children live without proper footwear, exposing them to injury and disease every day, Children outgrow their shoes quickly. That often leaves kids who live in abject poverty no option but to walk around barefoot. DDS solicited donations from Team Members statewide for only a few weeks. Team Members at each customer service center plus all headquarters divisions delivered the shoes to Human Resources. HR grouped and bundled the shoes for delivery. The number of shoes collected surpassed any expectations from the organizers. There were a total of 318 pairs of shoes collected from the DDS Team Members throughout the state. 307 pairs of shoes were collected for the United Way, and 11 pairs of shoes were donated to Goodwill.

Kentucky State Police

KSP and Special Olympics: Cover the Cruiser

The Kentucky State Police (KSP) created the ‘Cover the Cruiser’ fundraising event to help raise money for Special Olympics Kentucky (SOKY). Cover the Cruiser is a weeklong fundraising effort across the Commonwealth to Support Special Olympic athletes. KSP posts a police cruiser at local grocery stores, gas stations, and businesses and encourage Kentuckians to cover the cruiser with custom Special Olympics stickers. Individuals could place a sticker on the cruiser for a minimum donation of one dollar, which goes directly to Special Olympics. Troopers from each of the 16 posts across the state coordinated with Special Olympic athletes at these events. Troopers and athletes greeted citizens, giving them an opportunity to completely cover up their police cruisers for a great cause. During the campaign, troopers and athletes were able to educate local citizens about the great programs Special Olympics hosts each other and provide opportunities for citizens to get more involved. It was a great partnership raising $11,442.94 in one week for Special Olympics.

North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles

North Carolina DMV Bladen County Customer Contact Center Back to School Supply Drive

The North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles, Bladen County Customer Contact Center held its 5th Annual Back to School Supply Drive from August 8-19, 2022. The total items collected among the call center were over 1,300 back to school supplies. Over the years, the Bladen County Customer Contact Center has collected on average 12 boxes (copy paper size) of supplies each year. Items collected for the supply drive were spiral notebooks, composition books, copier paper, pens, pencils, pencil pouches, paper, crayons, color pencils, dry erase markers, erasers, pocket folders, tissue boxes, hand sanitizers, and sanitizing wipes. In 2019, 2020, and 2021, school supplies were also donated to the Bladen County Board of Education to ensure students and teachers have what they need for an excellent academic school year. Following the challenge, 16 boxes (copy paper size) of back-to-school supplies were delivered on August 23, 2022, to the Bladen County Board of Education. Items collected were the highest when compared to prior years as the smallest donations will make the biggest difference this school year.

Tennessee Department of Safety & Homeland Security

Tennessee Driver Services Division Assists Inmates Close to Reentry into Society with License or ID

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security partnered with the Tennessee Department of Correction and the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development by participating in initiatives to assist inmates with obtaining licenses and state identification cards upon reentry into society after being incarcerated in county detention facilities. At these events, the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security also provided reinstatement requirement letters to those inmates that had issues with their licenses. The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security also partnered with the Knoxville Area Urban League in initiatives to issue licenses to citizens that otherwise would not have the ability to visit a Driver Services Center and issued state identification cards and reinstatement requirement letters to citizens that were not eligible to be issued a driver license credential.

Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles

Virginia DMV Cornhole Tournament Fundraiser

Fundraisers come in all shapes and sizes, but in July 2022, Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) put a popular backyard game to work for a good cause, hosting its inaugural cornhole tournament to benefit the Children’s Hospital of Richmond. Sean Carley, a financial data analyst at DMV, had spent the last year and a half in and out of Children’s Hospital of Richmond as his 10-year-old son Thomas battled T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. As of summer 2022, Thomas is in full remission, but other children were still fighting, so Sean and his family wanted to support the hospital’s amazing work through fundraising. Virginia DMV regularly hosts events and fundraisers as part of the annual Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign, but after two years without in-person events, DMV staff was looking to get outside the box with a big idea. The goal was to not only benefit a great organization but to bring staff together and build camaraderie in a lighthearted, uplifting atmosphere. The idea of a cornhole tournament with food and beverages for purchase was proposed, and instantly embraced by the DMV community. The game was familiar, accessible, and spectator friendly. A DMV employee’s personal story behind the chosen cause only served to amplify enthusiasm for it. The response was phenomenal with 40 teams paying $20 each to participate in the cornhole tournament, and countless DMV employees dropping by throughout the event to watch the friendly competition and purchase a hot dog and lemonade to benefit the cause. The tournament event raised nearly $1,500 for Children’s Hospital of Richmond to help children like Thomas fight cancer. Virginia DMV plans to make the tournament an annual fundraising event.

Region 3 Recognitions

Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles

Indiana BMV Tricycles for Underserved Youth

The BMV held their Branch Manager Meeting in 2022, bringing together talented leaders from throughout the state. This three-day meeting gave attendees an opportunity to learn, share stories, spend time together outside of an office setting, and participate in several team building activities. The most impactful team building activity was building tricycles for underserved children. More than 100 BMV team members, some very handy and some putting something like this together for the first time, had a great time collaborating on this project. Teams of four worked side by side to build the tricycles, and when they saw one team struggle, there was no hesitation from others to jump in and help. When the activity was finished, the associates had assembled 25 tricycles. These were then donated by multiple sponsors to various groups, and the response from the groups was overwhelming. A response from one group read, “Our young people love the tricycles! We greatly appreciate your kindness and labor of love in putting these together and donating them; they will go to good use, making smiles for years to come.” Another recipient said, “The kids already love them so much! The timing was perfect on their arrival as we had just had to throw away a vehicle!” The joy on the faces of the children was of course rewarding but watching the team assemble the bikes was similarly impactful. This event symbolized what the BMV is all about, hard work, problem solving, and meeting the needs of those they serve.

Minnesota Driver and Vehicle Services Division

MN Afghan Resettlement Campaign

Approximately 76,000 Afghans have currently been evacuated to the United States through the federal program of Operation Allies Welcome. Minnesota has welcomed 1,363 evacuees between September 2021 and September 2022. The Afghan Resettlement Campaign was initiated through the DPS-DVS Commissioner’s Office. The Campaign was implemented by the Driver Services Unit attending multiple stakeholders and community group meetings and presentations for awareness and socialization. From January 2022, DPS-DVS specifically worked with the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), state program coordinators, and community businesses/partners to coordinate weekly group oral testing for resettled Afghans in Minnesota. Afghans that were tested orally in their native languages (Dari and Pashto) by an interpreter. The oral test is done to provide the Afghans the best opportunity to have a higher pass rate by testing in their native languages. In addition, DPS-DVS worked with DHS and the Minneapolis School District to support the community's translation of the Minnesota driver’s manual in Dari and Pashto. DPS-DVS is able to support the Afghan refugees to integrate them as quickly as possible in building a life in Minnesota by way of obtaining their driving and identification credentials. Since the campaign has been implemented, DPS-DVS has provided and accommodated 350 oral class D knowledge tests to Afghan refugees in their native languages, while still meeting the constant demand of serving the Minnesota public with exam services.

Missouri Division of Motor Vehicle & Driver Licensing

Missouri DOR eNotifications

In keeping with the Department of Revenue’s Vision, Mission and Values to better serve our citizens, the electronic notifications initiative was developed to offer an online subscription process that allows citizens to create and manage their own electronic notification preferences regarding motor vehicle renewals, boats, trailers, ATV’s, permanent disabled placards, non-driver and drive license, and more. Customers opting in for electronic notifications receive a text or email alerting them of upcoming expiring registrations/licenses instead of a mailed post card. This project aligns with the Department’s vision to provide every customer the best experience every time. The primary goal of offering electronic notifications was to give Missouri citizens the opportunity to decide how they wanted to receive their motor vehicle and/or driver license renewal notifications, reduce the cost of producing and mailing renewal notices, and reduce the number of paper renewal notices returned to the Department due to insufficient mailing addresses. Notifying citizens electronically is convenient and allows the Department the opportunity to send multiple reminder notifications to Missouri citizens when they would traditionally only receive one (1) paper notice for reminders or renewals.

Region 4 Recognitions

California Department of Motor Vehicles

DMV Community Outreach

The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Field Operations Division (FOD) partners with local communities to participate in over 200 outreach events throughout the year. These efforts result in the DMV being able to reach and serve thousands of Californians in vulnerable communities. Services provided by the DMV during these events support the community by ensuring its members have the identification they need to participate in special programs, which are intended to provide aid and improve their current life situation, or to replace critical identification and/or vehicle ownership documents lost during a natural disaster. In most cases, the services offered to these communities are free or reduced fee. On August 23 - 25, 2022, in partnership with other agencies, DMV representatives participated in a mobile homeless connect outreach in Los Angeles where DMV staff provided no fee ID cards to the individuals experiencing homelessness. The three-day pilot engaged more than 100 people at five sites, providing them access to an estimated 260 state and local benefits or services. Now that the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided, the DMV will be ramping up this in-person program and coordinating more outreach events with our local and state partners.

Idaho Transportation Department Division of Motor Vehicles

Idaho DMV Donates Refreshed Computers to Local Schools 

The Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) provides the technology equipment used at the county driver’s license and motor vehicle offices. The equipment is replaced regularly to ensure reliability and functionality while still having serviceable life. ITD and the Idaho Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) implemented a program to validate and donate useful surplus equipment, primarily workstations and document scanners, to local schools and learning institutions. Between March 25 and December 1, 2022, ITD donated 43 computers to the Hagerman Joint School District, 61 computers and a plotter to Boise State University, 59 computers and Cisco Equipment to the College of Western Idaho, 12 computers to North Star Charter School, 159 computers, an ice machine, and two printers to Nampa Christian Schools, 59 computers and four iPads to the Emmett Independent School District, and 102 computers to the Middleton School District.