Don't, Repeat DON'T -- Let Your Oklahoma License Expire!

Unless you want to spend a few hours in line and driving from one end of he city to the other.

FYI: If your Oklahoma driver's license expires, a simple trip to the tag agency will not solve the problem. As of November 1st, 2007, it's no longer an easy deal.

Backing up a bit, for the first time in over 40 years of driving, I forgot to renew my driver's license. And I'm not the one who noticed -- it was airport security in San Jose, which of added to the adventure. Yes, they will still let you travel, but not with ease. It was a full security check -- lots of wands, explosive checks, and bag checks. They questioned the golf ball in the purse, but I guess they decided it wasn't going to harm anyone. I was finally allowed to pass through, but the scanning machine at the gate had the last word as it loudly beeped as my boarding pass was scanned.

The next day a trip to the tag agency was in order, it was only three days since the license expired and I figured it would be a simple deal. Wrong. The new immigration laws have changed all that, but as the highway patrol man told me at the license bureau --we now have the "safest driver's licenses" in the country.
Huh ??

So here's how it went:
1. I went to the tag agency to renew expired license and was told I had to go to one of five license bureaus in the county. I was also told they are all crowded, to expect a long wait and to take my certified birth certificate or my passport. The agency also suggested going to the Yukon office, as the lines were not as bad there.

2. I went home, got my passport and headed to Yukon, getting there about thirty minutes before the office opened after their lunch break. Not too bad, only three people were there in line, so I ran over to get some lunch to eat while waiting. By the time I got back, I was number eight in line. Still not too bad, especially considering the horror stories I was hearing from people who tried one of the other offices.

All of the offices will only see a certain number of people on any day and once that number on a card was reached no more spots would be filled, even if it was still early. Many of the folks I talked to during the wait had been there earlier and were told to come back another day or time.


3. The Bureau opened at 1 pm and we were herded into a small, hot room with chairs lined up around the walls. One officer handed out slips of paper with handwritten number on them. And the wait began. More folks came in, all looking lost until someone told them to go get a number from the second room. People left when they realized they didn't have the right paper work, etc.

After 45 minutes of sitting in this room, it was finally my turn to explain why I was there. I handed over my passport, signed a paper stating I was born in the United States, checked a few other similar items. My finger prints were taken, as well as a picture that was temporary, to be used as identification at the next stop. At that time I was given a piece of paper verifying I had been there and was told I had ten days to get my license at a tag agency.

4. I wasn't putting it off any longer, I wanted this whole ordeal over with now. So I drove back to the tag agency, gave them the verification paper, the agent checked the computer to verify I was the right person by looking at the photo that was downloaded earlier by the highway patrolman. Then it was time for the official driver's license photo, another fingerprint taken and it was finally over after I forked over $7. or so.

Did I learn a lesson? Perhaps, but since I don't normally forget to renew, it wasn't really a lesson learned as much as it was just an uncalled for aggravation. Everything that I did and showed to the officer, could have been just as easily done at the tag agency, with much less work for everyone involved.

So, is this a great state? Or Not?